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Home > Systemwide > Service Array > Domestic Violence > Domestic Violence and Cross-System Collaboration > Domestic Violence, Child Welfare, and the Courts
Domestic Violence, Child Welfare, and the Courts
Collaboration among child welfare agencies, the courts, and domestic violence advocates is essential to better understand and respond to the multifaceted issues faced by children, youth, and families affected by domestic violence. The following resources provide information on State and local laws and policies as well as recommendations for practices, strategies, and guidelines to improve services for domestic violence victims and children exposed to violence.
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National Judicial Institute on Domestic Violence
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Helps judges and judicial officers identify and resolve issues in cases involving domestic violence and improves the justice system's ability to intervene in and prevent violence against women and children.
Commission on Domestic Violence
American Bar Association
Provides individualized support to attorneys representing victims of domestic violence that includes research assistance, sample practice tools, model pleadings, and access to experts in the field.
Domestic Violence Resource Guide
National Center for State Courts
Links to related online resources in the areas of batterer intervention, coordinated community response, human trafficking, prevention, research/evaluation, the Violence Against Women Act, and more.
A Judicial Checklist for Children and Youth Exposed to Violence (PDF - 520 KB)
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (2006)
Discusses the effects on children and youth of exposure to violence and summarizes promising community collaborations that employ a multidisciplinary approach in responding to children's exposure to violence. Also see the checklist. (PDF - 184 KB)
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Access Denied: The Barriers of Violence and Poverty for Abused Women and Their Children's Search for Justice and Community Services After Separation
Jaffe, Zerwer, & Poisson (2002)
Provides qualitative results from a study of women and their children affected by domestic violence, their experiences finding legal and social service assistance, and their recommendations to improve court and community responses to domestic violence.
Children and Teenagers Testifying in Domestic Violence Cases (PDF - 551 KB)
Cunningham & Hurley (2007)
In A Full and Candid Account: Using Special Accommodations and Testimonial Aids to Facilitate the Testimony of Children
Provides an overview of domestic violence court and ways to support the unique needs of children who are potential witnesses in domestic violence cases.
Children's Exposure to Domestic Violence: A Guide to Research and Resources (PDF - 1760 KB)
Summers (2006)
Helps judges and practitioners identify and understand the key issues surrounding children's exposure to domestic violence.
Court Collaboration in Family Violence Cases (PDF - 2930 KB)
Goodmark
ABA Child Law Practice, 20(12), 2002
Explores different strategies to foster collaboration between courts with overlapping jurisdictional responsibilities to better provide services, protection, and oversight for families and children exposed to domestic violence.
The Court's Role in Supporting and Protecting Children Exposed to Domestic Violence (PDF - 430 KB)
Hitchens & Van Horn
Journal of the Center for Families, Children and the Courts, 6, 2005
Summarizes literature on the effects on children of witnessing domestic violence, the impact of violence on parenting behavior, and children's safety with offending parents. Recommends specific ways courts can work together to serve children and families and proposes policies that protect children's interests.
A Family Affair: The Juvenile Court and Family Violence Cases
Gebo
Journal of Family Violence, 22(7), 2007
View Abstract
Examines differences in court treatment between adolescents who are family violence offenders versus nonfamily offenders and considers implications for policy and practice.
Report From the Wingspread Conference on Domestic Violence and Family Courts (PDF - 338 KB)
Ver Steegh & Dalton (2008)
Identifies five conceptual and practical tensions that have hampered effective work with families in which domestic violence has been identified or alleged, and emphasizes the need for continued multidisciplinary collaboration.
Strategies for Handling Cases Where Children Witness Domestic Violence
Turkel & Shaw
APRI Update, 16(2), 2003
Discusses the development of service and safety plans that address the needs of both the battered women and their children, as well as the need for batterer intervention programs.
Unified Family Courts: A Saving Grace for Victims of Domestic Violence Living in Nations With Fragmented Court Systems
Schwarz
Family Court Review, 42(2), 2004
View Abstract
Discusses the problems involved with fragmented court systems that serve domestic violence victims and the need for a unified family court that hears all cases for a single family, resulting in better service provision and fewer conflicting orders being issued.
Working From Inside and Outside Institutions: How Safety Audits Can Help Courts' Decision-Making Around Domestic Violence and Child Maltreatment
Pence & McMahon
Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 2003
View Abstract
Explores systems-analysis approaches, such as the institutional safety audit model, to test the effectiveness of collaborative interventions in meeting the needs of domestic violence victims and their families.
Youth Exposed to Domestic Violence: A Handbook for the Juvenile Justice System to Enhance Assessment and Intervention Strategies for Youth From Violent Homes (PDF - 1480 KB)
Baker & Jaffe (2003)
Discusses coordinated justice responses to domestic violence and the role of juvenile custody programs and probation.
(Back to Top)
Custody and visitation
Child Custody and Visitation Decisions in Domestic Violence Cases: Legal Trends, Risk Factors, and Safety Concerns (PDF - 102 KB)
Saunders (2007)
Describes major legal and social trends surrounding custody and visitation decisions and the social science evidence supporting the need to consider domestic violence in these decisions.
Differentiating Types of Domestic Violence: Implications for Child Custody
Ver Steegh
Louisiana Law Review, 65(4), 2005
Examines child custody determinations when dealing with different types of domestic violence and offers suggestions for appropriate court procedures and services such as parent education, mediation, supervised visitation and parent coordination.
Navigating Custody and Visitation Evaluations in Cases With Domestic Violence: A Judge's Guide (PDF - 348 KB)
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (2004)
Serves as a practical tool for judges on how to interpret and act on professional child custody evaluations when domestic violence is involved in family law cases. Includes bench cards and supplementary materials.
Parenting Arrangements After Domestic Violence: Safety as a Priority in Judging Children's Best Interest (PDF - 233 KB)
Jaffe, Crooks, & Wong
Journal of the Center for Families, Children and the Courts, 6, 2005
Discusses parenting plans when one parent has a history of perpetrating domestic violence against the other parent and provides strategies for courts to limit the opportunities for children to be exposed to parental conflict and violence.
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State and local examples
Ada County Family Violence Court: Replication Manual (PDF - 2960 KB)
Morse (2007)
Describes the Ada County, Idaho, project and offers practical implementation suggestions for child welfare agencies or courts interested in replicating it. Also see the Case Coordinator Handbook (PDF - 1700 KB) and Comprehensive Evaluation Report (PDF - 3810 KB).
Domestic Violence Advocacy in Dependency Court: The Miami-Dade Dependency Court Intervention Program for Family Violence Handbook (PDF - 2170 KB)
Maze, Aaron, & Lederman (2005)
Describes the development, implementation, and daily operations of a program in Miami-Dade County designed to address co-occurring domestic violence and child maltreatment in a dependency court setting.
Families in Court for Child Protection and Domestic Violence (PDF - 110 KB)
Hurst
Children, Families and the Courts Ohio Bulletin, 1(2), 2003
Discusses reasons for coordinating efforts to combat child maltreatment and domestic violence and describes the experiences of several Ohio communities in addressing the issue.
The Santa Clara County Juvenile Domestic and Family Violence Court (PDF - 214 KB)
Sagatun-Edwards, Hyman, Lafontaine, & Nelson-Serrano
Journal of the Center for Families, Children and the Courts, 4, 2003
Describes an innovative court-based intervention program in California and presents an evaluation of its effectiveness.
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