When facing legal and ethical challenges, there are a variety of strategies that will help service providers manage the situation.
Here are some other situations that could raise similar legal and ethical challenges:
A client or former client calls to tell you she has already left the jurisdiction with her child in contravention of a custody order.
Read more
You may have been subjected to financial abuse during your relationship, and it may be continuing now that you have left.
This kind of abuse is common, and can take many forms, including:
Your partner controls the money and makes all the spending decisions
He gives you a spending allowance and you have to account for the money you spend by providing him with receipts
The bank accounts and debit cards are in his name only
He does not give you any information about the family’s financial situation
You do not have any control over the credit cards
He steals money from you
He runs up debts that your family cannot afford to pay
His income tax is in serious arrears
He forces you to work and takes all the money you earn
He won’t let you work and uses this as an excuse not to let you have any money
Common post-separation financial abuse tactics
Your ex-partner maxes out the line of credit without your knowledge or consent or continues to accumulate debt in both your names
He refuses to provide you and the children with any financial assistance
He cuts off your access to any joint money (or empties joint bank accounts)
He uses banking information to try to find you
He interferes with your job in the hope you will lose your job and return to him because you have no money
Steps to take to protect yourself
There are some steps you can take,
Section 30 of the Children’s Law Reform Act allows a judge to order a custody and access assessment in certain circumstances. As you will see in the discussion below, section 30 assessments are somewhat different than assessments conducted by the Office of the Children’s Lawyer.
Section 30 assessment orders are not routine;
The courts, like all government and public institutions and agencies, are required to comply with Ontario’s Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, which is intended to ensure that all people with disabilities have full and equal access to all public services in the province.
Realities to consider
Before we look at what accommodations are available in the family court,
The Hague Convention is a tool to assist in having children returned who have been wrongfully removed from one jurisdiction that has signed the Convention to another that has also signed it.
It is an international treaty, the full name of which is the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction,
If you are a woman’s advocate who focuses on family law issues, it’s helpful to connect clients to your local Victim Witness Assistance Program (VWAP) if an abusive partner is facing criminal charges.
Keep in mind that:
VWAP workers are employed directly by the Ministry of the Attorney General and have disclosure obligations to the Crown Attorney.
DomesticShelters.org is the largest searchable directory of domestic violence services in Canada and the US. This site is full of helpful tools and information for people who are subjected to or are working to end intimate partner abuse.
On December 6, 2017, Luke’s Place was spotlighted for our unique focus on family law issues.
Understanding intersectionality is important if we are to provide the best possible services to women. Especially for those of us from the dominant culture, learning about intersectionality, power, privilege and oppression is a lifelong process.
What is intersectionality?
The word intersectionality describes the complex reality of being human. Each of us is shaped by multiple social or cultural identities that affect how we understand ourselves,
This is the second of two posts on reporting to child protection. The first explored your duty to report.
The woman’s response
A woman who learns that her children are under investigation by child welfare may have many different feelings. She might be:
Afraid that her children will be taken away
Afraid that the investigation will have an impact on her immigration status
Afraid of retribution by her partner for telling the family secret
Relieved that the secret has been shared
Her feelings towards you,
This is the first of two posts on reporting to child protection. Next week, we’ll look at how to manage the impact of making a report.
You will be confronted, from time to time, with situations where you may have a duty to report a situation to child protection authorities because children have been exposed to ongoing domestic violence and,
