Citation

Moloney L. J. Fam. Stud. 2008; 14(2-3): 254-270.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Informa- Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.5172/jfs.327.14.2-3.254

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In this article I address the issue of support for decision making in cases of alleged violence in Australian family courts. I focus first on results from a 2007 Australian Institute of Family Studies Research Report, which examined cases of violence and abuse alleged prior to the implementation of the Commonwealth Government's 2006 Family Law Amendment (Shared Parental Responsibility) Act (the reforms). A key finding of the Report was that although allegations were common and often serious, they appeared to have only minimal impact on court sanctioned parenting outcomes. The seemingly minimal impact appeared, in turn, to be linked to scarcity of detail within the allegations, combined with little corroborative or independent expert evidence. As a backdrop against which to consider post reform possibilities, I draw on five published responses to the AIFS Report as well as on key observations emanating from the North American Wingspread Conference on Domestic Violence and Family Courts. I acknowledge a number of Australian reform-related initiatives that are aimed at responding more adequately to allegations of violence and abuse. But I argue that the impact of these initiatives will be constrained by the extent to which courts have access to good information and assessments. When this is unavailable at interim hearings, I support those who argue that the default position of courts must be to adopt an initial risk management approach that privileges safety over relationships, and to follow this up as quickly as possible with services that can provide quality independent information. But I argue further that a truly effective family law system should be one in which independent forensic assessments, or at least good independently derived information, is available to courts right from the beginning. While it is too early to argue definitively that the reforms cannot achieve the goal of responding adequately to allegations of violence and abuse, I point to ongoing structural and resource reasons that are likely to make this difficult. I conclude by pointing to structural and resource-based changes, which may eventually prove necessary to address this problem.