Domestic Abuse and Child Contact

This book presents papers from an International Symposium on Contact Disputes and Allegations of Domestic Violence: Identifying Best Practices, held in London in May 2017. The editors invited a group of international experts to explain the approaches taken in their jurisdictions to allegations of domestic violence in child contact cases, with a view to identifying international best practices in such cases. The book includes contributions from England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Canada, Sweden and Spain, as well as information presented at the symposium from New Zealand and Australia. The chapters include attention to particular issues such as specialist domestic violence courts, judicial training and hearing children's voices. Collectively, the chapters identify a set of common problems experienced across all of the jurisdictions, including an overwhelming emphasis on the value of children's ongoing contact with non-resident parents and the consequent minimisation of domestic violence and the muting of the voices of children who do not wish to have contact with abusive parents. Best practices in taking domestic violence seriously and providing adequate protection from further abuse for children and non-abusive parents were less in evidence. However, the concluding chapter draws together details of several initiatives and approaches which offer promising ways forward. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law.

Rosemary Hunter FAcSS is Professor of Law and Socio-Legal Studies at the University of Kent. Adrienne Barnett is Senior Lecturer in Law at Brunel University London. Felicity Kaganas is Professor of Law at Brunel University London. Shazia Choudhry is Professor of Law at Queen Mary University of London.

Introduction: contact and domestic abuse Rosemary Hunter, Adrienne Barnett and Felicity Kaganas 1. National self-image as an obstacle to ensuring children's rights in the context of domestic violence and family law - the case of Sweden Linnéa Bruno 2. Contact disputes and allegations of gender violence in Spain Teresa Picontó-Novales 3. A voice or a choice? Children's views on participating in decisions about post-separation contact with domestically abusive fathers Stephanie Holt 4. The approach in Scotland to child contact disputes involving allegations of domestic abuse Kirsteen M Mackay 5. Enhancing judicial skills in domestic violence cases: the development, implementation, and preliminary evaluation of a model US programme Peter G Jaffe, Claire V Crooks, Maureen Reid, Jennifer White, Danielle Pugh-Markie and Linda Baker 6. Specialised domestic violence courts in Canada and the United States: key factors in prioritising safety for women and children Jennifer Koshan 7. Specialist domestic violence courts for child arrangement cases: safer courtrooms and safer outcomes? Mandy Burton Conclusion: international best practices Rosemary Hunter and Shazia Choudhry