Courts

More Lawyers Should Feel Comfortable Bringing Kids To Court

Some people -- even lawyers -- actually like kids. Some people -- even lawyers -- have kids.

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kid suitI have had a number of in-person court appearances in the past few months, and the experience has shown me that lawyers may treat in-person appearances a little differently than they did before the pandemic. Last week, I wrote about how some lawyers seem to appear in court in less formal attire, possibly due to the return to in-person appearances following the COVID-19 pandemic. I have also seen lawyers bringing kids to court in recent months, which may be due to childcare issues or the fact that kids were out of school for the summer. At a recent court appearance, I saw a lawyer bring three kids to court! I was impressed with how this lawyer was able to handle his children as well as the legal task at hand. In some circumstances, bringing kids to court is entirely appropriate, and in certain situations, this might actually be an advantage to the lawyer.

The first time I ever saw a lawyer bring a kid to court was about a decade ago when I was arguing an appeal in front of a state intermediate appellate court. The gallery of the courtroom was full of numerous lawyers, and possibly some clients, who were all in formal attire. In the back, a father who was wearing a suit sat next to a kid who was probably 7 or 8 years old, who everyone presumed was his child.

When it was time for this lawyer to argue his appeal, the lawyer told the child to stay in his seat and then he approached the lectern to make his arguments. I think the appellate judges were touched by the fact that the father brought his child to court that day. One of the appellate judges remarked “it looks like you have a legal assistant with you” or something to that effect to playfully point out that the lawyer was accompanied by his child. From the smiles I could see on the faces of the appellate judges, it seemed that bringing a kid to court did not hurt this lawyer, and might have actually helped humanize the lawyer in front of the appellate judges.

As previously mentioned, I saw a lawyer bring three of his kids to court several weeks ago, and this was an interesting sight to see. The kids followed the lawyer around as he worked on various matters. Everyone was talking about the kids and the attorney who had brought them to court. However, I did not hear a negative comment about the fact that this lawyer brought his kids to court. On the contrary, most of the comments were about how cute and well-behaved the kids were and how it was cool that this lawyer showed his kids what his work was like. I am not sure whether having children helped the lawyer advance his client’s interests, but it definitely added some levity to the drudgery many people experience in court.

Granted, I am the type of person who likes it when people bring their kids with them to various events. When I was in law school, I took a family law class with a student who brought her infant child to class with her. There were only around 30 people in the class, so it was pretty noticeable when the child acted up, but for the most part, it was really enriching to have the child there. Of course, not everyone is comfortable around children, and some people do not understand childcare and other issues that surround having kids. Indeed, I remember one story about a judge who scolded a lawyer for bringing an infant to court even though the judge refused to adjourn a matter because the lawyer had recently given birth. In addition, male and female attorneys are likely to be perceived differently if they bring children to court because of ways people unfairly perceive women differently from men if they mix work with their personal lives. Moreover, some courts have rules prohibiting children from appearing in court due to the disturbance they may cause, and this is usually reasonable if members of the public are not expected to appear in court.

In any case, people should be more understanding of lawyers who need to bring children to court for childcare or other reasons. Courts are generally flexible to members of the public bringing children to court, and this should extend to lawyers. In the post-COVID era in which in-person court appearances are rarer, and hybrid work arrangements make consistent childcare more impractical, judges should be more flexible to lawyers who bring children to courts. Kids usually do not cause a disturbance in court, and they can add an enriching and humanizing element to court proceedings that is typically absent in the legal industry.

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Rothman Larger HeadshotJordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at [email protected].

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