Academic warns domestic abuse is often ignored in child contact disputes

Date: 18th June 2021
Category: Equal protection from violence

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Despite legal requirements to consider domestic abuse in child contact decisions, research reveals victims are sometimes told by solicitors not to disclose domestic abuse in child contact disputes.

Over the past four years, Professor Richard Whitecross, a legal researcher at Edinburgh Napier University, has been doing research on how the courts handle child contact cases in which there has been domestic abuse. He has interviewed lawyers, sheriffs and many women with children.

To help ensure sheriffs consider domestic abuse when reaching their decision, he is encouraging organisations and individuals to share their experience of Child Welfare Reports in a short, confidential, telephone interview.

He hopes that with your help, positive reforms can come about.

If you want to be interviewed by Richard, please contact him at:  R.Whitecross@napier.ac.uk.

• Find out more about Professor Whitecross’s work here.
• Find out more about child welfare reports here.