Judicial Officers and Staff
The Family Court has a staff of more than 300 employees including the judiciary. These employees comprise the following primary groups.
Judges
Number: The Court is allowed 17 Judges of equal judicial authority, one of whom is appointed by the Governor as Chief Judge and who is the chief administrative and executive officer for the Court. A bare majority of the Judges must be of one major political party with the remainder of the other major political party.
Appointment: The Governor nominates the Judges, who must be confirmed by the Senate.
Tenure: The Judges are appointed for 12-year terms, subject to reappointment.
Qualifications: Judges must have been duly admitted to the practice of law before the Supreme Court of Delaware at least 5 years prior to appointment and must have a knowledge of the law and interest in and understanding of family and child problems. They shall not practice law during their tenure and may be reappointed.
Family Court Judges
Chief Judge Michael K. Newell |
|
Judge Mark D. Buckworth |
New Castle County |
Judge Peter B. Jones |
Sussex County |
Judge Mardi F. Pyott |
Kent County |
Judge Arlene Minus Coppadge |
New Castle County |
Judge Joelle P. Hitch |
New Castle County |
Judge Paula Ryan |
Sussex County |
Judge Felice G. Kerr |
New Castle County |
Judge Jennifer B. Ranji |
New Castle County |
Judge Natalie J. Haskins |
New Castle County |
Judge Janell S. Ostroski |
New Castle County |
Judge Louann Vari |
Kent County |
Judge James McGiffin |
Kent County |
Judge Mary Much |
New Castle County |
Judge Michael Arrington |
New Castle County |
Judge Theresa M. Hayes |
Sussex County |
Judge Eliza M. Hirst |
New Castle County |
Commissioners
Commissioners hear a broad range of cases including child support, misdemeanor crimes and delinquency, civil protection orders, bail hearings and other cases as assigned. Commissioners are attorneys at law who are nominated by the Governor, confirmed by the Senate and serve an initial 4-year term. Upon second and subsequent appointments and confirmations, commissioners serve six-year terms. Orders from commissioners are subject to review by Family Court Judges.
Family Court Commissioners
Commissioner Sonja Wilson |
Sussex County
|
Commissioner Loretta Young |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Andrew Southmayd |
Sussex County |
Commissioner DeSales Haley |
New Castle County |
Commissioner David Jones |
Kent County |
Commissioner Jennifer Mayo |
New Castle County |
Commissioner James J. Maxwell |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Para Wolcott |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Danielle S. Blount |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Kim DeBonte |
Sussex County |
Commissioner Gretchen C. Gilchrist |
Kent County |
Commissioner Theresa A. Sedivec |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Craig R. Fitzgerald |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Emily Farley |
Kent County |
Commissioner Francis E. Mieczkowski III |
New Castle County |
Commissioner Jessica Markowski-Kelly |
New Castle County |
Support Personnel
The three major administrative divisions of the Court are Court Operations, Fiscal Services and Human Resources. Fiscal Services and Personnel Services perform staff functions, whereas Court Operations is responsible for the delivery of services to the public.
New Employee Orientation
Welcome to the Family Court of Delaware. We are pleased that you have chosen to be a part of the Family Court and look forward to your contributions. This section of our website is designed to help you get started on your employment at Family Court.
Please click the category of employee below where you will find information specific to you.