(WASHINGTON, D.C.- 11/17/25) – Senator Suzanne Weber (R-Tillamook) represented Oregon on the national stage last week, addressing lawmakers, mental health experts, and reform advocates at the Family Court Violence and Reform Conference hosted by Dr. Bandy X. Lee, a nationally recognized forensic psychiatrist and violence prevention expert.
In her address titled “The Urgent Need for Family Court Reform,” Senator Weber outlined the urgent need for transparency, accountability, and constitutional oversight within family courts and announced her plan to establish an Oregon Family Court Reform Task Force.
“Family courts should be the most humane and just part of our judicial system,” said Senator Weber. “Instead, too many families leave courtrooms with trauma, debt, and shattered trust. When justice depends on a family’s ability to pay, it ceases to be justice at all.”
Weber emphasized that the family court system has grown without constitutional structure or oversight, leaving families vulnerable to unequal treatment and financial exploitation. “We must realign this system with fairness, integrity, and the constitutional rights of parents and children,” she said.
A Call for Courage
Senator Weber concluded by calling on both state and federal leaders to ensure Title IV-D and IV-E funding never incentivizes conflict or unnecessary child removals.
“This is not a partisan issue. It’s a human rights issue,” Weber added. “If justice is blind, she must also be brave. This is a civil-rights moment for millions of families. We must ensure that our justice system serves families. When we serve families first, we serve the future of America.”
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Senator Suzanne Weber represents Senate District 16, including Tillamook, Clatsop, Columbia, and portions of Washington County. A lifelong educator and community leader, she has been a strong advocate for Oregon families, schools, and rural communities throughout her service in the Oregon Legislature.