A woman who wants to move to Florida with her two children was ordered by a New York court to have Skype available in her home so that her ex-husband can video conference with the children three times a week. Florida divorce lawyers said it was the first case they knew of where Skype, a computer program that allows people to telephone or videoconference over the computer, was ordered to be used by the parties.

The mother, Debra Baker, asked the court for permission to move to Florida. Her parents live in Venice Beach. The family home, where she lived with the two children, is in foreclosure. The Bakers have a nine-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter.

Neither party suggested that Skype could be an option. The father, James Baker, is a construction worker. His attorney was not sure his client would even be able to use Skype. Debra has no problem with the webcam.

In other family law news, a court has said that a lesbian must pay child support... 

A New York state appeals court has said that since child support is based on the best interests of the child, a lesbian can be ordered to pay child support for a child borne by her former lesbian partner.

The partner who was ordered to pay child support was not a birth parent nor an adoptive parent of the child, but the court said the partner's conception of the baby was premised on assurances that she would support the child financially.

Sources: New York Post "Divorced Mom Can Make Great Es-Skype, Judge Rules" August 12, 2010; Law.com "N.Y. Appeals Court Affirms Lesbian's Duty to Pay Child Support" August 6, 2010