The Court and each Judge shall have authority to:
(1) Conserve the peace;
(2) Commit or bind, with or without surety, as a committing magistrate, for appearance at the proper court, persons charged with having violated the law together with material witnesses and impose conditions as set forth in § 1021 of this title;
(3) Determine and punish civil and criminal contempt;
(4) Issue process for the exercise of its jurisdiction and require service thereof under pain of contempt;
(5) Receive, hear, and make recommendations concerning matters assigned to it by any state or municipal court. Such recommendations shall be certified to the assigning court;
(6) Transfer for good cause any proceeding from the Court in 1 county to the Court in any other county;
(7) Enter, proceed on, and satisfy in the name of the State any forfeited bond, provided however, that the proceeds of any bond forfeited for a party’s failure to appear in any civil or criminal child support proceeding shall be paid over to the payee of the child support order and applied to the child support account;
(8) Sit separately or jointly with any or all other Judges;
(9) Hear, determine, render, and enforce judgment in any proceeding before the Court;
(10) Assess fees, costs, and fines; or remit them in proper cases;
(11) After due notice to interested parties, review, revise, or revoke any prior order of the Court with reference to the custody, control, care, support or visitation of any person, or in any proceeding where failure to do so would result in manifest injustice;
(12) Punish for contempt any person who, in order to evade the Court’s jurisdiction, removed from the State any child concerning whose possession, custody, or alleged unlawful detention, a writ of habeas corpus or other proceeding has been filed;
(13) Administer oaths and take acknowledgments;
(14) Appoint guardians ad litem;
(15) In any civil action where jurisdiction is otherwise conferred upon the Family Court, it may enter such orders against any party to the action as the principles of equity appear to require. When a Family Court order, excluding stipulations, relates to the awarding of custody, a police officer has the authority to enter private property to enforce such order when such order requests the assistance of a police officer;
(16) Appoint guardians of the person over minors under 18 years of age;
(17) Appoint attorneys and/or Court-Appointed Special Advocates to serve as guardians ad litem to represent the best interests of a child in any child welfare proceeding;
(18) Determine and enter disposition for alleged violations of probation by juveniles in accordance with the procedures established at § 4334 of Title 11. The term Commissioner or any probation counselor as used in § 4334 of Title 11 shall include the appropriate member of the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families;
(19) Decide appeals from administrative hearings of substantiated cases of abuse or neglect made pursuant to § 902A(d) of Title 16 [repealed], and to decide appeals made pursuant to § 902A(g) of Title 16 [repealed] for orders of administrative expungement of substantiation for the purpose of no longer reporting an individual’s name pursuant to § 8563(b) of Title 11;
(20) In a civil proceeding involving the welfare of a minor child or the safety of a party, require any party or any other resident of the party’s household or other person with regular direct access to the child, to submit to a state and federal background check.
a. The background check shall consist of:
1. A report of the individual’s entire criminal history record from the Delaware State Police or a statement from the Delaware State Police that the State Police Central Repository contains no such information relating to that person.
2. A report of the individual’s entire federal criminal history record pursuant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation appropriation of Title II of Public Law 92-544. The Division of State Police shall be the intermediary for the purposes of this paragraph.
3. A certification from the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families as to whether the individual is named in the Central Register as the perpetrator of a report of child abuse.
b. Costs associated with obtaining said criminal history information and child abuse registry information shall be borne by the State.
c. The Court at any stage in the proceeding may take judicial notice of any report, record or certification described in this paragraph (20).
10 Del. C. 1953,
§
925;
58 Del. Laws, c. 114,
§
1;
63 Del. Laws, c. 133,
§
1;
65 Del. Laws, c. 95,
§
2;
65 Del. Laws, c. 190,
§
1;
66 Del. Laws, c. 300,
§
1;
70 Del. Laws, c. 449,
§
1;
72 Del. Laws, c. 451,
§
1;
72 Del. Laws, c. 469,
§
5;
77 Del. Laws, c. 122,
§
1;
83 Del. Laws, c. 461,
§
1;
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
12
cases (
2 in the last 5 years), 1972–2026 · leading case:
Wife, P. v. Husband, P., 287 A.2d 409 (Del. Ch. 1972).
Wife, P. v. Husband, P., 287 A.2d 409 (Del. Ch. 1972).
“As to fees the Family Court Act provides at 10 Del.C. § 925(o) : “In any civil action where jurisdiction is otherwise conferred upon the Family Court, it may enter such orders against any party to the action as the principles of equity appear to require.”
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
· cites it 4× “20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
Bridev One, L.L.C. v. Regency Centers, L.P. (Del. Super. Ct. 2018).
· cites it 3× “The Court found that 10 Del. C. § 925,32 which gave the Family Court jurisdiction over petitions for minor guardianships, did not divest the Court of Chancery of its concurrent jurisdiction to appoint guardianship.”
Simpson v. Simpson (Del. 2019).
· cites it 2× “The Family Court held that the Wife was not entitled to relief under Rule 60(b), but that the Family Court could exercise its equitable powers under 10 Del. C. § 925 to grant relief.3 The Family Court found that both parties had acted with unclean hands because they both had…”
Winston, Audrey v. Kevin Winston (Del. 2026).
· cites it 2× “20, 2008) (stating that 10 Del. C. § 925 “provides for the assessment of fees under equitable principles”).”
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
· cites it 4× “20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
Sl v. Al, 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
· cites it 4× “[20] Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
Garrison v. Downing (Del. 2020).
“”); see also 10 Del. C. § 925(15) (“In any civil action where jurisdiction is otherwise conferred upon the Family Court, it may enter such orders against any party to the action as the principles of equity appear to require.”
Roberts v. Blocker (Del. 2020).
“See also 10 Del. C. § 925(14) (providing that Family Court has the power to appoint guardians ad litem).”
Cook v. Cook (Del. 2022).
“20 10 Del. C. § 925(3), (10). 21 Del. State Bar Ass’n v.”
Horwitz ex rel. Horwitz v. Horwitz, 311 A.2d 888 (Del. Ch. 1973).
· cites it 2× “A copy of this decision was forwarded to this Court allegedly in compliance with 10 Del.C. § 925 and Chancery Rule 87, Del.”
— 10 Del. C. § 925(10) — 1 case
— 10 Del. C. § 925(14) — 1 case
Roberts v. Blocker (Del. 2020).
“See also 10 Del. C. § 925(14) (providing that Family Court has the power to appoint guardians ad litem).”
— 10 Del. C. § 925(15) — 5 cases
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
Simpson v. Simpson (Del. 2019).
“The Family Court held that the Wife was not entitled to relief under Rule 60(b), but that the Family Court could exercise its equitable powers under 10 Del. C. § 925 to grant relief.3 The Family Court found that both parties had acted with unclean hands because they both had…”
Garrison v. Downing (Del. 2020).
“”); see also 10 Del. C. § 925(15) (“In any civil action where jurisdiction is otherwise conferred upon the Family Court, it may enter such orders against any party to the action as the principles of equity appear to require.”
Sl v. Al, 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“[20] Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
— 10 Del. C. § 925(16) — 3 cases
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
S.L. v. A.L., 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“20 Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
Sl v. Al, 735 A.2d 433 (Del. Fm. Ct. 1999).
“[20] Petitioner contends that, because the Court has ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear issues relating to dependency/neglect regarding Petitioner, the Court also has the power under the principles of equity to order emancipation as relief.”
— 10 Del. C. § 925(3) — 2 cases
Cook v. Cook (Del. 2022).
“20 10 Del. C. § 925(3), (10). 21 Del. State Bar Ass’n v.”
Horwitz ex rel. Horwitz v. Horwitz, 311 A.2d 888 (Del. Ch. 1973).
“A copy of this decision was forwarded to this Court allegedly in compliance with 10 Del.C. § 925 and Chancery Rule 87, Del.”
— 10 Del. C. § 925(o) — 1 case
Wife, P. v. Husband, P., 287 A.2d 409 (Del. Ch. 1972).
“As to fees the Family Court Act provides at 10 Del.C. § 925(o) : “In any civil action where jurisdiction is otherwise conferred upon the Family Court, it may enter such orders against any party to the action as the principles of equity appear to require.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.