Carrie Leonetti, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Victims in the family court system are often forced to come face-to-face with their alleged attackers when giving evidence. A new bill aims to afford these victims more protection when testifying.
In a new report, child family violence survivors describe how family court worsened their trauma and profoundly affected their well-being even into adult life.
Family courts’ hostility – both in the US and abroad – toward claims of paternal or spousal abuse has been widely reported. Now there’s an in-depth study that documents that hostility.
As federal parliament heads off on its Christmas break, a cloud of uncertainty hangs over the legal community and the Australians who access the family law system.
Rae Kaspiew, Australian Institute of Family Studies
In interviews of separating parents, many expressed satisfaction with family dispute resolution and the courts. But less than half thought the family law system protects children’s safety.
The Australian Law Reform Commission’s report makes a radical new suggestion that federal family courts be abolished. It also recommends changes to laws concerning parenting and property division.
Attorney-General Christian Porter on a crowded agenda
Christian Porter says the response to the consultations for a national apology to victims of child sexual abuse has been very strong with a total of 167 attendees at consultation sessions so far.
The proposed merger of the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court is intended to address delays and inefficiencies in the system. Experts question, however, how effective the reforms will be.
Until now, Australia was the only country that required youth with gender dysphoria to seek approval from the Family Court for the second stage of hormone treatments.
Currently the Family Court has to decide for parents and teens whether or not transgender young people can get the hormone treatment they need. This could change today.
Daughters across the US feel like their relationship with their father was damaged by their parents’ divorce. Here are steps daughters can take to repair that relationship.
Merging the back-end operations of Australia’s federal courts could have significant implications for the way in which resources are allocated to meet the needs of family courts and their clients.