Policy Research

Inside Family Court (July 2026)

Inside Family Court: An Analysis of New York State Child Support Data is a groundbreaking analysis of nearly 800,000 records of child support cases filed statewide over five years, both pre- and post-COVID, that the New York Office of Court Administration (OCA) provided to Her Justice. In our analysis of the data, Her Justice examined trends in various case characteristics such as duration, number of court appearances, and outcome, and identified differences between cases filed in and outside of New York City. We assessed COVID-19’s impact on family courts and investigated the impact of interventions introduced during our research. The report also provides information on how Her Justice obtained and analyzed the datasets and recommendations for further study. An executive summary of the report can be found here. Her Justice also developed a series of interactive dashboards which allows users to explore the data on their own.

Report From Court (November 2024)

Report From Court was launched in 2024 to create a platform for “real time” public reporting on the experiences of attorneys in New York City Family Court. Report From Court collects information from Her Justice staff attorneys and pro bono attorneys working with our clients about their experiences in Family Court by having them answer a brief survey after they conclude a court appearance. Survey responses related to litigant demographics, case types, court appearance outcomes, and litigants’ meaningful participation in court are aggregated and displayed on the Report From Court website to increase transparency of the day-to-day experiences of those navigating the Family Court system. Data collected through Report From Court also invigorates public awareness of the significance of this court system, especially for people living in poverty who rely on it most. It also supports the advocacy of Her Justice and allies for improvements in Family Court.  

Stories from Immigrant Survivors of Gender-Based Violence: The Impact of Work Authorization (November 2023)

Stories from Immigrant Survivors of Gender-Based Violence: The Impact of Work Authorization captures stories and data critical to understanding how the U.S.’s immigration system and civil justice system work today. The report also provides recommendations to federal, state, and city policymakers for how to reform these systems so that the greatest number of immigrant women can obtain and preserve the best possible immigration status through a process that prioritizes their safety and dignity.

Towards Justice for Parents in Child Support Courts (March 2021)

Towards Justice for Parents in Child Support Courts includes original data about the experience of litigants in New York City child support proceedings. Based on a 2-year court watching project  in which 89 trained volunteers observed 797 child support case appearances in New York Family Courts, this report proposes recommendations to improve the system’s delivery of individualized justice that is fair in both process and outcome.