Division over proposed changes to the Family Law Act
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 7
Proposed changes to the Family Law Act have been introduced into Parliament for consideration, that focus on the best interests and safety of the child. The government released the draft changes in November 2010, stating that the changes were designed to provide better protection for families and children at risk of violence.
The proposed changes to the Family Law Act include a new definition of family violence with a list of examples of the kind of behaviour that might fall into that definition, along with a revised definition of abuse. At the core of the family violence definition is a focus on behaviour that coerces, controls or makes someone fearful. According to Attorney-General Robert McClelland, 73% of the 400 submissions received were in favour of the proposed changes.
But single father and shared parenting advocacy groups have criticised the changes for fear that they will detract from the encouragement of shared parenting in the Howard government’s amendments to the Family Law Act in 2006.
Some might argue that the proposed changes will place more focus on and give greater weight to claims of domestic violence against children when deciding parenting arrangements for separated families in court. Lawyers will also be required to advise their clients to speak up about domestic violence fears, as opposed to hiding them out of fear that they won’t be believed or viewed as ‘unfriendly’.
Fathers’ groups, however, worry that these changes will make it easier for judges to restrict parental contact, and increase the likelihood of false statements in messy or hostile divorce and separation cases.
Despite these objections, McClelland believes that “it will help people within the system to understand and recognise family violence and child abuse, and encourage them to act…The government continues to support shared care but only where this is safe for child.”
Key points of the Family Law Legislation Amendment Bill 2011:
- Higher priority to be given to a child’s safety and protection from domestic violence.
- A revised definition of ‘family violence’, to include violent, threatening or other behaviour that coerces, controls or creates fear. This behaviour includes (but is not limited to) stalking, taunts, financial restrictions, destroying property, causing harm to an animal and assault.
- The removal of disincentives for raising issues of family violence in court, including penalties for false violence allegations.
family law
April 27, 2011
The unfortunate thing is that through the 70′s and 80′s that protection was so widely abused, things had to change. Every wife was alleging violence against her and the children to justify removing the children from their home and to terminate their contact with their father. If there is violence in the home the pepetrator is a criminal and should be dealt with as such, promplty. There should be no right for one parent to unilaterally decide that the children will no longer have their other parent in their lives let alone be removed from their home, friends and other family.
Alienated Father
April 28, 2011
We have been married 23 years. After living seperated lives under the one roof for a number of years my wife has now decided that she would like to have the family home to herself (along with our 13yo and 19yo living at home). She picks an agressive verbal arguement with me (as usual she starts the arguements over unrealistic issues) and then when I am trying to ignore the ranting and eat my breakfast she lifts my plate and spills my breakfast on the table. I smack her hand once with two fingers to get her to leave me alone and then she proceeds to start screaming at the top of her lungs that I have abused her and runs off to get her phone to try to record the event. She runs to our youngest son and starts putting on an act accussing me of whatever comes to her mind, she runs up to me again and says words to the effect that “you will pay for this” and then opens a window beside me and starts screaming to the neighbours “help, help, he’s hurting me”. I say to her “you are just making this all up and trying to record it, what are you trying to do?” She then says ” you are going to pay for this” and walks off while I continue to finish my breakfast. For two days the atmosphere at home in the evenings is frostly as my greetings when I get home are curt which is different from the usual friendly greeting (we are usually on good terms except when she has the occassional unannounced explosion to me). On the second night there is a knock at the door and Anthea goes to open the door and receive two police officers. I hear her say to them “He doesn’t know anything about this”. They serve me with a Domestic Violence and Protection Order and tell me I can a few minutes to pack a bag with a few things and then I must hand in my key to the family house of which I own half (and have invested far more effort in than she) and leave my children, my pets, my possessions and my home and to try to find some accomodation in the middle of the night with a suitcase in my hand and bewilderment of where the hell this has all come from. The Order says I have punched her and shaken her, both are total fabrications and that she is in fear of her life. I have never hit her once in 23 years of marriage. If I have hit her why arn’t i being charged with assault? She is the person to be feared by me, not the other way around. Will we start putting people (men) in jail to prevent them from possibly committing a crime in the future? She has been talking about wanting me to leave the house, she has a lawyer friend and a police officer friend and know that I think about it this has all been carefully orchastrated from the beginning. She expects me to continue to pay half the mortgage so she can live in luxury with all her things and my things while I have no fixed address and live out of a suitcase and not able to afford to rent my own house or get immediate access to the substantial equity I have in my house without a drawn out and costly legal dispute. Do people realise how a vindictive person can use the DVO to totally shatter an innocent person’s life? How fair is that?
Charles Pragnell
May 7, 2011
Yes violent offenders should be prosecuted in the Criminal Courts and severely punished and placed on a National Register of Violent Offenders, but Family Courts are concerned regarding the care and welfare of children which is a civil matter quite separate from criminal proceedings. Currently Family Courts do not have the powers, expertise, or resources to investigate instances of domestic violence (Chief Justice Bryant – 2009) therefore it has been virtually impossible to prove such allegations. Unproven charges of domestic violence and child abuse due to the inadequacies of the legal system are not false allegations. The care, protection, and welfare of children is far more important than giving parents an absolute right to have custody of or contact with their children when they may be dangerous and toxic to their children. This is where `Shared Parenting’ has mainly failed, but is also creating instability, inconsistency, and insecurity for many hundreds of children forced to live week-about in different houses with different rules and standards of care. And frequently with a parent who they detest and despise for the harm that parent has done to them in the past, or has been indifferent to their needs. Such children are often living out of suitcases and cannot sustain friendships with their peers in either area where their parents are living. They are therefore isolated and severely handicapped in their social development. Thats what `Shared Parenting’ means for the children who are its victims.
Annabelle
May 16, 2011
Charles Pragnell hit the nail on the head. Unproven allegations do not mean false allegations. A review by the Family Courts found that only 2% of child sex abuse allegations were deliberately false. They also found that more men make deliberately false allegations.
Andrew
May 19, 2011
Desperate men do desperate things. Desperate mothers do desperate things . If your not seeing your children you are being denied the very meaning of your existence. Emotions become out of control. The results are more suicides more murders. court orders might be in place but there is no method of policing them .Basically bitter women across the country denying fathers access to their children with no recourse for their actions. Everything this labour government does smacks of incompetence and class warfare
john k
June 30, 2011
its only when u hv had false allegations made against u that no how it feels to be let down by the law that is to be protecting u…this is an epidemic in flc,s now…ur a loving father one minute n live together n come home to nothing then u go to the family court to get ur children brought back to u then uv done something to them then u cant see them then if ur lucky u can see them for very little time as long as u hv supervision…alll this just to be part of ur childs life ..how degrading is it ..all for lies …police wont charge them even when you can prove they hv made it up…there is enough of it happening now with changing the laws to make it legal to lie in court …and u say ” in the best intrests of the child ” its ok to tell lies to get some one put in jail if u dont like them…..great way to bring up the kids …people who make false allegation should be punished..if not what messages are we sending our kids..
reonappo
May 7, 2012
yes you are writgh women make up these false alligation but nothing happens to them it is us fathers who have to were it .