Judge Elizabeth Gleicher

The topic of this month’s OCBA Juvenile Brown Bag Lecture was appeals.  We were fortunate enough to have Michigan Court of Appeals Judge Elizabeth Gleicher speak to our group.  The seminar was very well-attended and informative.   I was really impressed by Judge Gleicher’s grasp of this area of the law.

For those of us who follow this area of the law, Judge Gleicher’s work is very familiar.  Her opinions in this area are very well-reasoned, but what I find most impressive is the impact she has had on the rest of the bench.  In the short time she has been on the bench (she was appointed in 2007), there has been a shift in both the way the Court of Appeals views child protection cases and a renewed emphasis on these cases.  The Court has published more opinions in this area than ever.   This has even caused the Michigan Supreme Court to take up more termination of parental rights cases.

Here are a few of quick notes on Judge Gleicher’s seminar:

• It is important to preserve issues for appeal.  She emphasized the importance of making objections and filing motions to make a clear record.  As a trial attorney for 27 years, she understands how difficult this can be.  She explained that unpreserved issues require a great deal analysis to even reach the substantive issue than an issue preserved at the trial court level.  She also discussed the public policy of requiring issue preservation to create an incentive for parties to seek a remedy from the trial court first.
• The judge discussed hot topics in the Court of Appeals.  The Court is looking at the ability of incarcerated parents to plan for their children by finding proper care and custody with family member or others while they are incarcerated.  The Court is also looking at parenting time for children in care as a reasonable effort toward reunification.
• She also addressed the importance of appealing jurisdictional adjudications because the right to appeal jurisdiction is lost if an appeal is not timely filed.  Raising the issue of jurisdiction after parental rights are terminated on a supplemental petition is considered a collateral attack on the termination and is not permissible.  Thus, trial attorneys should advise their clients that they have an automatic appeal as of right at the jurisdictional phase.

© 2010, Melinda Deel. All rights reserved.

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