What is an in camera interview? The phrase “in camera” is a Latin term defined in Black’s Law Dictionary as: “In chambers; in private.” Â The interview does not involve a camera or a videotape at all! Â If a party is asking for the Court to have an in camera interview of a minor child, the request is for the Judge or Magistrate to interview the minor child privately with neither parent or his/her attorney being present. Â An Appellate Court in Michigan said it very well years ago . . .
“A child custody determination is much more difficult and subtle than an arithmetical computation of factors. Â It is one of the most demanding undertakings of a trial judge, one in which he must not only listen to what is said to him and observe all that happens before him, but a task requiring him to discern and feel the climate and chemistry of the relationships between children and parents. Â This is an inquiry in which the court hopes to hear not only the words but the music of the various relationships.” Â Dempsey v. Dempsey, 96 Mich. App. 276, 289 (1980).
What is the goal of an in camera… Read More... “In Camera Interviews of Children in Divorce Court”