My Legal Blog

Howdy! I'm Dan Smith and I live with my wonderful family in Perth. This is my legal blog which aims to look at every part of the legal system. I should point out that i'm not a lawyer myself. However, my good friend Stan has been representing people in court for many years. I find Stan's work fascinating and I love asking him questions. I have even done a bit of my own research into the legal system. I decided to pull everything together here so I could organise my thoughts while also providing useful info for others. Thanks for checking out my blog!

How to Deal with Violence during Separation or Divorce

Law Blog

It's an unfortunate fact of life that many loving relationships may end in acrimony, and their case may wind up in front of the family law courts. In most situations, this is down to disagreement, and while matters may get quite heated, both parties are able to progress without turning to violence. However, some situations may degrade to such an extent that violence does come into the equation or, in some scenarios, violent behaviour may have triggered the separation in the first place. What can the courts do in this situation, in order to protect the affected party?

Criminal Law

Physical violence is, of course, a criminal offence, and the affected individual should engage the services of the police as soon as possible. If necessary, they can bring a criminal case against the perpetrator, and that particular law court can issue protection orders.

Family Law

Nevertheless, the Family Law Act also covers violence in all of its various forms. Regulations identify this type of behaviour as being physical, verbal, threatening or implied and whether it intends to control or coerce a member of the family.

Types of Behaviour

In this case, it is possible to apply for a family violence order and to identify the nature of the violence. For example, the other party may engage in psychological or emotional abuse, may have withheld funds to such an extent that this can be determined to be economic abuse, or may have used coercion and other elements to dominate the other party. This type of behaviour may also affect a child, if they were to see or hear anything that may affect them, psychologically or emotionally.

Interim Orders

Family law courts do have the capability to issue orders to prohibit these actions, and they can register an interim family violence order if needed. They may also issue a restraining order that will prevent any type of contact between the parents in the worst-case scenario. This order can be modified if needed so that the two parents can meet momentarily to hand over the children to each other. However, every situation is different, and both sides will need to put their case forward and be heard before any judgement is given.

Getting Support

Separation or divorce can be traumatic enough as it is without the threat of violence in any form. Talk with a lawyer who has experience in these areas to help you cope with the situation. For more information on family law, consult a family lawyer in your area.

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17 December 2019