Moving Forwards Or Back To The Family Law Act 1975

1384 Words6 Pages
Title Alexander, Renata 2010, ‘Moving Forwards or Back to the Future?: An Analysis of Case Law on Family Violence under the ‘Family Law Act 1975’ (Cth) University of New South Wales Law Journal, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 907-928. Topic This paper focuses on the aftermath of domestic and family violence and investigates the impact this violence has on children and their primary carers. In conjunction with this study, the author questions the 2006 reforms to the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (‘FLA’). Alexander’s premise is that the reforms have done little to adequately resolve the issues for the victims and in some cases have made matters worse. Many victims continue to experience violence long after the court proceedings have finished. The…show more content…
Overall, the debates focuses on whether the change is crucial to protect women and children or are the proposed changes are really just about placating the critics. The objective of this and other similar papers is to present an evaluation of the current system and make recommendations for changes. The common thread among these papers is the focus on children’s exposure to domestic violence and the fact that it is now considered a form of child abuse. The main concern is for the victim’s welfare, especially those of the children, after the courts have passed judgements. The paper also challenges the FCA and the Family Magistrates Court (‘FMA”) to regard and interpret family violence between adults as child abuse. The context of the paper comprises the fields of Law, Psychology, Sociology and…show more content…
The author emphasises the complexities of dealing with the aftermath of domestic and family violence. She cautions that not enough has been done to protect the victims and carers once court orders have been handed down. The article also contributes to the debate on the merits and flaws of the current system. Alexander makes the assumption that while there have been positive amendments to the FLA, in some areas there have been less positive changes. Her concern is that the gap between theory and practice of the law is widening and that specialised professionals should be utilised by courts to help the judges make more informed decisions. The research paper is convincing and the author has used credible references to make her point. The strength of the article is in the authority and experience of the writer who is often at the ‘coal face’ of the problems both in her volunteer work and legal practice. Strength can also be found in the compelling court cases used in the paper. The author has made it clear as to what she believes are the problems, therefore, alternative interpretations of the data would be difficult to argue. However, the readers would have benefited from less emphasis on the case law section and further elaboration on the author’s thoughts and

More about Moving Forwards Or Back To The Family Law Act 1975

Open Document