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REGISTER SOON! SPACE IS LIMITED! FREE CLE/Training for Attorneys and Advocates Children’s Testimony in Domestic Abuse Proceedings Training October 5, 2018 at 12:00 p.m. Want to have a better understanding of the role of the child and permissibility of their testimony in domestic abuse proceedings? This training is for you! The Family Court Enhancement Project has been working for four years to help all family court practitioners, including lawyers and advocates, better understand the needs of children and their interests in domestic abuse proceedings. This training will discuss how and when it is appropriate to use children’s testimony as well as the process and relevant evidentiary considerations when deciding to do so. This training will be led by Hennepin County Family Court Referee Mike Furnstahl, family law attorney Tom Tuft of the law office of Tuft, Lach, Jerabek & O’Connell, and Legal Advocate Amanda Keuseman of Home Free Community Programs. This 1.5 hour training is free of charge and will be offered at the Minneapolis Central Library, Pohlad Hall S-280. CLE credit has been applied for. If you want to attend, please contact Adam Miller at adam.miller@courts.state.mn.us or 612-596-1412. The information provided in this document was created by the Minnesota Judicial Branch, 4th Judicial District, Family Court Enhancement Project under grant number 2016-FJ-AX-K001. The opinions and views expressed in this document are of the author’s and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice.

Thanks to the continued and generous support of members and sponsors, AFCC and AFCC-MN are offering a $600 scholarship to attend the: 55th National AFCC Annual Conference Compassionate Family Court Systems: The Role of Trauma-Informed Jurisprudence June 6-9, 2018 Washington Hilton Hotel Washington, D.C. The scholarship covers registration fees for one person to attend the conference, including conference-provided meals and networking functions. Recipients are responsible for funding their own travel, lodging, additional meals and all other related expenses. Scholarships are non-transferable and must be used to attend the event for which they are awarded. SCHOLARSHIP SELECTION CRITERIA: AFCC-MN membership Preference is given to AFCC-MN chapter members. Prior scholarship recipient Those who have received an AFCC scholarship in the past five years are not eligible. Financial need & additional funding support An applicant’s personal financial need and whether additional funding support will be provided by an employer or source other than the applicant or AFCC. Relevance The relevance of an applicant’s organization and/or practice to AFCC’s mission. Diversity An applicant’s diversity circumstances including, but not limited to, age, ethnicity, geographic region, disability, and religion. Community and/or organizational contributions The impact of an applicant’s attendance at the AFCC event on clients and/or institutions, organizations or people in his or her community and/or an applicant’s contributions to AFCC. Additional circumstances Any other circumstances not addressed by other questions on the application. Scholarship application process: –  All applicants must complete the application form here. –  Completed applications should be emailed to afccmn@gmail.com. –  The application deadline is Friday, MARCH 9, 2018 by 5 PM

Dear Friends and Colleagues: AFCC (Association of Family and Conciliation Courts), Minnesota Chapter is pleased to announce a great opportunity to enrich and expand your practice and network with other professionals in the family law courts community.  We’ve had exceptional participation in our sponsorship program for the past SEVEN YEARS, and we hope to continue this established tradition in 2019-2020.  We invite you to join us in furthering the mission of AFCC-MN, while also publicizing your practice, business, or organization. The mission of the AFCC MN chapter, which is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes, is: To provide an interdisciplinary forum for the exchange of ideas and the development of procedures to assist families in conflict; To encourage the development of courts and court procedures emphasizing collaborative methods of dispute resolution; To develop and improve the provision of services that aid in the resolution of family dispute; and To protect the interests of children in relation to all aspects of family law, child protection proceedings, and all other legal proceedings affecting children. We encourage you to join us in our annual sponsorship campaign, designed to not only further the goals of AFCC-MN, but to provide you with the opportunities to:  expand and increase your practice or business, participate in continuing education/training with CLEs and CEUs, enhance your competency in family law systems and services, and network with leading legal, mental health, and dispute resolution practitioners, policymakers, and researchers. THANK YOU for reading this letter!  And thanks to all of our past and present sponsors.  We hope you’ll join us or renew your sponsorship in 2019. Attached you will find the sponsorship application.  Feel free to contact our Sponsorship Committee members through the central email address AFCCMN@gmail.com with questions. Sincerely, Jack DeWalt, AFCC-MN President

In accordance with the AFCC-MN bylaws, the Nominations Committee would like to set forth the following slate of nominees for terms beginning in 2018: President-Elect: The Honorable James Street, Referee of Family Court Vice-President:  Courtney Schneider, J.D. Secretary: Lee Novelli, J.D. Board of Directors (3-year term): Melissa Chawla, J.D. Zak Chesson, Hennepin County Family Court Services Mediator/Evaluator Deborah Link, MA, LPCC, LMFT Voting will be conducted amongst active chapter members during the AFCC-MN Annual Meeting on July 19, 2018 at the start of the AFCC-MN annual conference. Officers and Directors shall be elected by a majority of AFCC-MN members in attendance at the annual meeting from candidates nominated by the Nominations Committee or nominated by members in attendance from the floor.

Thank you to the following sponsors for helping AFCC-MN continue to provide our members and the family law community innovative educational programming in 2019-2020. For more information on sponsoring AFCC-MN, click here.

Thanks to the continued and generous support of members and sponsors, AFCC and AFCC-MN are offering a $600 scholarship to attend the: 54th National AFCC Annual Conference Turning the Kaleidoscope of Family Conflict into a Prism of Harmony May 31-June 3, 2017 Sheraton Boston Hotel Boston, MA The scholarship covers registration fees for one person to attend the conference, including conference-provided meals and networking functions. Recipients are responsible for funding their own travel, lodging, additional meals and all other related expenses. Scholarships are non-transferable and must be used to attend the event for which they are awarded. SCHOLARSHIP SELECTION CRITERIA: AFCC-MN membership Preference is given to AFCC-MN chapter members. Prior scholarship recipient Those who have received an AFCC scholarship in the past five years are not eligible. Financial need & additional funding support An applicant’s personal financial need and whether additional funding support will be provided by an employer or source other than the applicant or AFCC. Relevance The relevance of an applicant’s organization and/or practice to AFCC’s mission. Diversity An applicant’s diversity circumstances including, but not limited to, age, ethnicity, geographic region, disability, and religion. Community and/or organizational contributions The impact of an applicant’s attendance at the AFCC event on clients and/or institutions, organizations or people in his or her community and/or an applicant’s contributions to AFCC. Additional circumstances Any other circumstances not addressed by other questions on the application. Scholarship application process: –  All applicants must complete the application form here. –  Completed applications should be emailed to afccmn@gmail.com. –  The application deadline has been extended to Friday, MARCH 3, 2017 by 5 PM.

Free Training Opportunity – April 14, 2017 With support from the Minnesota Supreme Court and the Fourth Judicial District, the FCEP is hosting a multidisciplinary domestic violence training Family Court: Domestic Violence Revisited April 14, 2017 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Mitchell Hamline School of Law 875 Summit Avenue St. Paul, MN 55105. The Fourth Judicial District was one of four courts in the country to receive grant funding from the Department of Justice – Office on Violence Against Women for the Family Court Enhancement Project (FCEP).  The FCEP is a multi-year demonstration project tasked with better addressing and accounting for domestic violence in custody and parenting time family court cases. The training will feature Dr. Peter Jaffe, an internationally-recognized expert on the intersection between domestic violence and family court, and the impact of domestic violence on children. The goal of this training is to engage district court judicial officers, appellate judges and other multidisciplinary stakeholders in a collaborative discussion about achieving the best results in family court for families experiencing domestic violence. Participants will be better able to: Assess and articulate the impact of domestic violence on children. Screen for and identify the nature and context of domestic violence in family court cases. Evaluate the impact of domestic violence on the victim parent and its potential impact on his/her parenting, including protective actions the parent has taken to ensure safety. Evaluate the impact of domestic violence on the perpetrator’s parenting, and the appropriateness of any interventions to address abusive behavior and increase accountability. Determine the least restrictive parenting arrangement appropriate under the circumstances while prioritizing maximum safety for the victim parent and children. Reconcile and apply Minnesota statutes, appellate decisions and social science research. REGISTER HERE! Registration is limited and will close on March 17, 2017. Please contact Shannon Wachter at 612-596-1412 or Shannon.Wachter@courts.state.mn.us with any questions!

Beginning January 1st, 2017, a membership with AFCC-MN has more great benefits! AFCC-MN members can now: Attend all Lunch & Learns for free. Save 50% on registration for Half-day Seminars. With these new benefits, your AFCC membership pays for itself. Not a member yet? Click here to register today and take advantage of these great new offers. Or if your existing membership has lapsed, you can renew your membership here. And don’t forget to register for the Minnesota Chapter here.

Dear Friends and Colleagues: AFCC (Association of Family and Conciliation Courts), Minnesota Chapter is pleased to announce a great opportunity to enrich and expand your practice and network with other professionals in the family law courts community.  We’ve had exceptional participation in our sponsorship program for the past FOUR YEARS, and we hope to continue this established tradition in 2016-2017.  We invite you to join us in furthering the mission of AFCC MN, while also publicizing your practice, business, or organization. The mission of the AFCC MN chapter, which is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes, is: To provide an interdisciplinary forum for the exchange of ideas and the development of procedures to assist families in conflict; To encourage the development of courts and court procedures emphasizing collaborative methods of dispute resolution; To develop and improve the provision of services that aid in the resolution of family dispute; and To protect the interests of children in relation to all aspects of family law, child protection proceedings, and all other legal proceedings affecting children. We encourage you to join us in our annual sponsorship campaign, designed to not only further the goals of AFCC MN, but to provide you with the opportunities to:  expand and increase your practice or business, participate in continuing education/training with CLEs and CEUs, enhance your competency in family law systems and services, and network with leading legal, mental health, and dispute resolution practitioners, policymakers, and researchers. THANK YOU for reading this letter!  And thanks to all of our past and present sponsors.  We hope you’ll join us or renew your sponsorship in 2016. Click here for a sponsorship Application.  Feel free to contact our Sponsorship Committee members through the central email address AFCCMN@gmail.com, with questions or call 612-442-5966. Sincerely, Judy R. Sherwood, AFCC MN President and the AFCC MN Sponsorship Committee:  Shannon Bixby-Pankratz, Esq., Victoria Brenner, Esq., Courtney Schneider, Esq., Kari Kanne, Esq, and Jai Kissoon.

AFCC-MN is sad to announce the passing of Doneldon Dennis, an influential member of AFCC-MN. Doneldon devoted his career to families in conflict. Having worked in mental health care at the Crisis Intervention Center, Doneldon joined Hennepin County Domestic relations in 1980. Doneldon was an early supporter of AFCC-MN, presenting at conferences and making many donations to further AFCC’s mission.  He would be so happy to see that our chapter is one of the largest in AFCC and that we have so many varied and engaging programs for family law professionals. His obituary can be found here.

Read a message from Nancy Ver Steegh, president of AFCC International and AFCC-Minnesota Member, on professional reflection. 2014_01_Jan_Presidents_Message_Ver_Steegh

As some you may have noticed, our new and improved website has been launched! Thank you to Judy Sherwood, our Public Relations committee chair and the ad hoc web committee, Kari Kanne, Jai Kissoon and Courtney Schneider for all of their work to make this happen. Some features that I’d like to point out: Member Spotlight. Our home page features a “Member Spotlight.” We plan to spotlight a different member each month. Featured members will be selected via nomination by another member(s) or self-nomination, and a vote by the board or the executive committee. The executive committee meets next on December 13, 2013, and the board meets every other month. We would love your nominations for members with notable achievements, important news to share or unsung heroes that should be recognized. Please submit nominations to webmasters@afccmn.org by December 9, 2013. Our first featured member will be Kendra Hagen at Gray Plant Mooty in St. Cloud. Look for her next month! Photography. The site currently contains “stock” photography. We would like to personalize the site to reflect features about our wonderful State and our organization. One of our members coaches a college moot court team and a team member has taken a collection of scenic photographs of the Twin Cities. We plan to upload some of those photos to the website giving the photographer appropriate credit. We would also like to feature images of other parts of our State captured by members. If you have taken photographs that depict something interesting, beautiful or entertaining about Minnesota, please send the photograph and details about its location to webmasters@afccmn.org. You will be given artistic credit – and there is no deadline on this one! Member Only. The “Members Only” section is still under construction. However, we intend this section to be minimally a repository for organizational policies and procedures, information about committee meeting participation and locations, etc. The website is a work in progress and we will continue to do our best to expand its capabilities over time. We welcome your suggestions as we do so. You can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook – just look to the right side of the page and click! Click here to view and bookmark the new website: http://www.afccmn.org/ Mary