Joint Select Committee on Australia's Family Law System

Women's Legal Service Victoria (Women's Legal) response to the terms of reference and the five recommendations for reform, outlined in this submission, are based on the lived experiences of the women we represent and also the experience of our lawyers who have been and are working on a daily basis to protect the safety of women and their children in the justice system.

Over the past decade Women's Legal has dedicated significant resources to participating in various inquiries and reviews into the family law system, as well as generating its own research to inform advocacy. In 2018 Women's Legal publicly launched the Small Claims, Large Battles report which highlights the barriers that financially disadvantaged women with small property claims face in accessing their entitlements through the family law system.

When this inquiry was announced we felt deeply concerned by statements in the media that suggested that women lie about family violence so that men don’t get access to their children. We have come a long way in understanding the dynamics of family violence. To change the national narrative in this way is not only a backwards step it is also extremely dangerous for women and children experiencing family violence in their homes.

Reform of the family law system and improving the family violence response of the system must be made a priority for the Federal Government in 2020. Inaction will only lead to more women and children falling through the cracks and having to manage all the safety risks themselves, without system oversight.