FREDONIA – Attorney Michael J. Sullivan is seeking election to the now vacant Family Court judge position in Chautauqua County.

Sullivan has been rated highly qualified by the Independent Judicial Election Qualification Commission.

“The experience that comes with my more than 25 years representing children, parents, grandparents, guardians and foster parents in Family Court will benefit the residents of Chautauqua County if I am elected Family Court Judge,” Sullivan said while announcing his decision to seek election to the vacant Family Court Judge position following the retirement of Judge Judith Claire. “In addition to my work representing people in Family Court, I have chaired and served on several committees working diligently to improve the experience of those appearing in the Family Court. Chautauqua County Family Court is in the midst of a New York State Child Welfare Court Improvement Project and I have served for five years as one of only two private practice attorneys on the Chautauqua County Steering Committee. We have brought forward several innovations to improve the operation of this court and improve outcomes for the children.”

Sullivan has practiced law in New York since February 1985 and has maintained his law office at his current address, 7 East Main Street in Fredonia since 1991. A graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law, he received his undergraduate degree from the University of Dayton, Dayton Ohio. He is a member of the Northern Chautauqua County, and the Erie County Bar Associations. He is the Attorney for the Child Liaison from Chautauqua County to the Fourth Department Appellate Court program. He serves on the New York State Child Welfare Court Improvement Project Steering Committee. He is co-chair of the adolescent Subcommittee. Sullivan is also a panel member on the New York State Surrogate Decision Making Committee.

“We have a youth in court orientation where twice a year we bring children into the courthouse, prior to their first court appearances, for a tour. This allows them to become familiar with the facility and to learn about the people who work on their case, Sullivan continued, “and we have seen success in the area of conditional surrenders, where parents are allowed certain rights after a surrendering their children for adoption and allowing the adoption in less time because the appeal process which can take two years is eliminated.”

“Children are benefiting from the changes we have recommended and implemented here in Chautauqua County. We have seen success in our Family Treatment Court where parents with addiction have received necessary treatment while working to reunite with their children. For 12 years our Family Court has offered parents with drug addictions the opportunity to participate in an intensive Family Drug Treatment Court. The outcome has been dozens of successful graduates and many babies born to participants that were drug free at birth. I participated in the planning of the treatment court and since its inception have served as the attorney for the child on the team.”

Drawing from the success of the treatment court, Chautauqua County will be one of 8 counties in New York launching a new pilot project on Sept. 1 designed to identify substance abuse issues in families facing abuse and neglect proceedings. Parents will be screened and if needed, will be directed to obtain an evaluation at the start of the process rather than weeks or months into the process. The parents in these cases will be required to be in court every two weeks until they have completed their drug and alcohol evaluation. If treatment is recommended, they will return to court monthly to report on their status. Sullivan explained, “the goal is to reduce the time children spend in foster care while assuring that parents are successfully engaged in treatment before the children are allowed to return home.”

Attorney Sullivan has been the Chautauqua County Liaison to the Appellate Court’s Attorney for the Child program from Chautauqua County for 20 years. “Some of the most difficult, but also most rewarding work in Family Court is representing the children.” New York laws require the appointment of an attorney for children in our courts when their parents are litigating custody and visitation, when the child has been abused or neglected and when a child under the age of 16 has committed an act which would be a crime of they were an adult. “I was first appointed by the Hon. Lynn Hartley and then continued in that role by now retired Family Court Judge, Judith Claire. This allowed me to have an impact on the way legal services are provided to children.”

The Family Court deals daily with the most traumatic issues of every day life.

“Great efforts are being made by the various court improvement committees to train the people who work and practice in the Family Court to understand the trauma people appearing in Family Court have suffered and continue to facie. Attorneys, court staff; caseworkers and supervisors are continually looking for ways to reduce the trauma of children and adults alike.” Sullivan continued, “This court is unique in its role of facing the trauma suffered by families. Experience with these issues is the measure to assess a potential Judge.”

“There is still much work to do and as a Family Court Judge for Chautauqua County I will put my full effort and attention to both adjudication of the cases before me and working to improve the experience of participants in the court. Family Court is for many people their only experience with the judicial system and it comes with the most trauma. I have the experience from my practice and my service on improvement projects to make a difference in the Court and the lives of the people of Chautauqua County,” Sullivan explained.

Sullivan served 25 year as a member of the Dunkirk-Fredonia Salvation Army Advisory Board. He served fourteen years as a member of the SUNY Fredonia College Council, from 1997 until 2011. He continues to be an active member of the Fredonia Volunteer Fire Department having served the community in that fashion for 30 years.

Sullivan is a member of St. Joseph’s Church in Fredonia. He resides in Fredonia with Valerie and their grandson, Joshua.