Mary, a hearing-impaired lesbian, was seeking visits with her twelve-year-old daughter whom she had raised and lived with since birth. In fact, Mary was the stay-at-home parent and she and her daughter Liza were extremely close. After Mary and her wife separated, Liza went back and forth between her parents’ homes for about two years. But when her wife’s older child from a different relationship went off to college, she suddenly and unilaterally started to restrict Mary’s access to Liza.
LeGal engaged the pro bono assistance from a law firm to represent Mary in Family Court. During the eighteen-month proceeding, there were numerous and lengthy adjournments due to lack of sign language interpreters and also the court’s busy calendar. During the proceedings, Mary has not had an overnight visit with Liza who has been tormented thorough her pre-adolescence not knowing where she will end up living, failing in school and having no friends. This situation is a grave injustice for both Mary and Liza.