Describing the family court system as being in "deep crisis," New York State Bar Association President Stephen Younger announced the formation of the Family Court Task Force. It will be comprised of top legal minds with expertise in family law who will conduct a comprehensive study of the problems in the current system and propose solutions.

From foster care to child abuse and neglect, family courts deal with difficult issues involving New York children. With a record-setting number of statewide court filings last year, there are currently 4,601 filings for every judge.

The problem is critical in New York City. From 1991 to present, there have been no judges appointed to the family court bench there. And New York City Family Court total filings increased 23 percent, from 206,186 to 253,421 in 2009.

In announcing the task force, Younger noted other troubling statistics that he said highlight a growing crisis. Family court filings reached a record high of nearly 750,000 last year statewide, with filings related to family violence increasing 30 percent in the last two years. And in the New York City Family Court, each year a typical judge handling child protective cases hears 2,100 cases - up from 1,600 cases in 2005.

The task force is co-chaired by Judge Rita Connerton, supervising family court judge for the 6th Judicial District, Broome County, and Susan Lindenauer, retired counsel to the president and attorney-in-chief of the Legal Aid Society. The task force will examine key areas to improve family courts across the state.

Among the topics to be explored are:

• What additional family court resources are needed and in what areas?

• Improvements required in case management and utilization of staff.

• New technologies aimed at improving efficiency.

• Operational improvements needed to better serve families statewide.

"There may be no place where shaping the future and restoring confidence in our government institutions comes together as clearly as in our family court system," Younger said in announcing the formation of the task force. "To thousands of New Yorkers, family courts are the face of our legal system. But unfortunately, with overcrowded dockets, too few judges and far too many delays, these courts resemble hospital emergency rooms and our family law attorneys are forced to perform triage."