The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-06-03
Domestic Relations Court
 Championed by CiUitans
Committee, After Lengthy Study, Recommends New Tribunal With Concurrent Jurisdiction in Chancery and Juvenile Cases-Club to Press Passage of
 Proposed Act Through Next Legislature

or modify the orders and decrees of the juvenile court as to a child. The appellate procedure from juvenile 10 chancery or probate court involves inevitable delay and expense to those interested who are usually least able to afford it. The unweildiness of the system of two jurisdictions in Inc field of domestic relations may be il- lustrated by the not infrequent in- stance of a child being tried and sub jected to discipline by the juvenile court while the parents are involved in a divorce proceeding in the cir cult ccurt
 It seems eminently advisable that one court should handle all questions of divorce, alimony, the custody and delinquency of Children. and all such interralated problems arising out of the marriage complex. thereby en- abling one tribunal to view these questions affecting a single family CT it's members together and in their relations to each other.
 IL is proposed therefore to esta5- lish q domestic relations branch of the circuit court of Jefferson coun- ty, which would exercise both the power and Jurisdiction wielded by the present chancery division of the cr-
 
 juvenile court. the only appeal from whose decrees would be to the su- preme court of Alabama. Thus al questions involving domestic rela- tions cognizable by the courts at all would be under one supervision. The juvenile court would be abolished The new court would have as It's of- ficiafs not only the presiding judge i but suitable probation officers and nlatrons with eventually adequate quarters for the maintenance of the machinery of the court.
 With a single Jurisdiction over such matters reconciliations between dissatisfied or warning parents, and between parents and recalcitrant or erring children could better be ef- fected, underlying causes and cendi- tions investigated, more complete statistics gathered and the entire problem handled in a more satisfac- tory way.
 Tn addition to these considerations the removal from the present chan cery court of divorce litigation would greatly expedite the handling and de- cision of the increasingly numerous and important cases involving pro- perty rights of all sorts, over which the chancery court now has sole JutisulCtfoH. mat court IS one or rne most important, If not the most i'm portant, single division of our circuit court, but owing to the fact that the docket is crowded with divorce suits Gan average of over 1000 a year in this county alone), great delay is entailed in the decision of other cases.
 It may be. added that Judge Murphy Of the juvenile court, heartily and disinterestedly indorses the idea. The plan Is derived from that of the ex- isting court of domestic relations in Cincinnati, which has met with marked success. It is therefore the recommendation of your committee that the Civitan club of Birmingham m indorse the proposal for the estaD- lishment of domestic relations branch of the circuit court of Jef- ferson county, and use it's influence toward the procurement of appropri- ate legislation for that purpose at the next session of the Alabama leg islature. Respectfully submitted PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE.