The Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia have released a new plan to demonstrate their commitment to supporting people affected by family violence.
The Courts’ Family Violence Plan aims to demonstrate a continuing commitment to addressing issues of family violence by providing a comprehensive set of actions that support people who are experiencing, or at risk of, family violence.
Chief Justice of the Family Court, Will Alstergren said the Courts recognised the close connection between family breakdown and violence, and the detrimental impact on adults and children who lived with family violence.
“Protecting family members, and particularly children, from the effects of family violence is fundamental to the decisions made in the best interests of the children, and ensuring the safety of people involved in family law litigation is a significant priority,” Chief Justice Alstergren said.
“The Courts take family violence very seriously and realise that we must continually strive to do better,” he said.
“This plan identifies clear goals, actions to be taken and timelines in relation to protection from family violence; safety at court, and information and communication.”
He said the plan had refined and updated the Family Violence Plan 2014-16.
“It builds on the important work undertaken by the Courts under the 2014-16 plan and will be used by administrative staff, decision-makers, legal practitioners, service providers and others involved in the overall family law system.”
Chief Justice Alstergren said the plan covered areas as diverse as building layout, security screening, risk assessment, safety planning for individual litigants, and education and training of staff.
The Courts’ 11-page plan can be accessed at this PS News link.
