Family law and it’s myriad apologists have a Pontius Pilate approach which is depressingly successful, the WRITTEN law is gender neutral, the law in practice is systemically BIASED against fathers. and children”. In both directions. Given the capacity for errors in human judgment, of course, there may be fathers who have heartbreakingly had access to their children unjustly restricted. The main issue for separated dads is that the rules that shape family life in the UK are unfair and unequal and any system of law based on those rules can only ever be biased against men. A couple of years ago a barrister, now a magistrate, told me she stayed in her controlling and abusive marriage for 10 years after she first wanted to leave. But there were other voices who agreed with Ms Sodha. In my personal experience there is definitely a bias but I don’t think it’s gender based. I do understand that this is a serious topic and that many people have very strong feelings upon it. “Whilst it’s true that mothers were usually the primary care giver in contact applications, this was simply a reflection of the social reality that women are more likely to take on the role after a relationship breakdown,” author Dr Maebh Harding said. We remain open for business during the COVID-19 outbreak. Undoubtedly there are mothers who get a raw deal, 5% in custody contests. I read a How does this attitude influence the outcome of a custody dispute? Tina wanted to keep fighting, but with this strong report against her, she was terrified that she would lose Lucy altogether, so she consented to one overnight stay per week. But there is a pyramid of harm. John Bolch often wonders how he ever became a family lawyer. that was a slightly long-winded way of saying that I thought I would have a Thankfully I’m a wife beating, lager drinking helicopter mechanic, so that problem falls on the professionals that are respected to make those decisions and not stupid people like me obviously. The vast majority of it being about men. A judge at court used my son to try and expose (I suppose) my narcissistic rage. From our experience working with families, we have realized family court can be biased towards mothers and against fathers in custody disputes. that the family courts are not actually biased one way or another. This is the rot at the core of our family law system. But the balance of evidence points to a system that is biased against abused women and children, not innocent, falsely accused men.”. circuit judge His Honour Glenn Brasse leaping to the defence of the judiciary, Everyone knows someone who’s had a shitty time in the family law system. At the same time, other than finally meeting a solicitor that for once isn’t treating me as an abuser by default, nobody is even willing to listen to my side of the story. highlighted in my weekly review post Historically, men have seen themselves as the primary breadwinners while viewing mothers more as the caretakers of children and the home. Over time, his molestation escalated to full-blown rape. When presented with an individual that is allegedly a horrible person, we are all far too eager to feel like a hero and chastise the alleged perpetrator. As I explained on Friday, one of her particular concerns relates to what she called “the junk science of “parental alienation syndrome”, which she suggests is being too readily accepted by courts as a fact, when raised by fathers in response to abuse allegations by mothers. I believed then, like 43% of Australians, that vindictive mothers routinely lobbed abuse allegations at their ex-husbands to stop them seeing their children. Stowe Family Law LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. But then I started reading their court documents and the research. Credit: Tamra Carr, The Geraldton Guardian. He said: “Sodha … suggests that the system is weighted against women. Under the current Family Law Act, judges are to prioritise the protection of children “from physical or psychological harm and from being subjected to, or exposed to, abuse, neglect or family violence”. Historically in family law, due … Statistically, it appears that the family courts in the United States are biased against fathers. The anomaly is that while the accuser may have legal aid representation, the accused, usually a man, does not.”, “Sodha refers to a “disproportionately male” judiciary, but that was certainly not the case in the central family court, where I sat. Maybe there is Stop family court collusion with misogynist fathers’ lobby. Are remote family courts really horribly cruel? If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or family violence, call 1800-RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au. In 2012, after three research studies found that victims of abuse were not being protected in the family law system, then-attorney general Nicola Roxon announced another set of reforms to the Family Law Act – essentially, attempting to undo the harm done by the Howard reforms. So under Australian law, there should not be a family court bias against Fathers in Australia. I think family courts are a bit patriarchal. getting it right in every case is obviously an impossibility. Take this case, for example, from 2010. This was a study on family reports – one of the most important pieces of evidence in a family law hearing – written by psychiatrists, social workers and psychologists, assessing the family dynamic and, commonly, evaluating allegations of abuse. For all the latest news from Stowe Family law Current beliefs and understandings are likely to be overcome by future knowledge, much as historical beliefs have been replaced by modern research. it would be easy to conclude from that that the ‘truth’ lies in the middle: But even with this substantial change to the legislation, the same stories persist. The suggestion was contained in an opinion piece by deputy opinion writer Sonia Sodha, which appeared in the paper on the 5th of March. SRA ref 469401. This led to retired They were, on the face of it, reasonable – judges should apply a presumption of shared parental responsibility unless violence or abuse was an issue. Fathers who are deprived of their parental rights, by the family court system, must defend their rights on issues such as child custody, child support, and accusations of domestic violence. A father already on the sex offenders register for possessing child abuse images was fighting for equal care of his daughters, aged eight and 10. Pats on the back all round in the courts and then twenty years later bailing your son out of a police cell for drugs or violence. When her mother, Tina, applied to stop contact, a family report writer dismissed Lucy’s allegations, described Tina as “psychotic” and wrote in his report to the court that if the allegations should be raised again, Lucy should be ordered to live full-time with her father. The title says it all – “The idea that family courts are biased against men is a dangerous fallacy.” After that, those of us who toil in the family court reform vineyard know what’s coming, and Sodha doesn’t disappoint. The “parental alienation syndrome” to which she refers may or may not exist as a phenomenon, but it is, sadly, true that some mothers turn their children unfairly against their fathers, just as often as is the converse.”. More on that later. We make those judgements based on gut, experience and what we can see in front of us. A Statehouse bill would take a step in that direction. Overnight stays were to be supervised by an “adult friend” of the father, to “address” the elder daughter’s nervousness, and the daughters should share a room for “mutual support”. Besides, I knew that this system was actually biased against fathers, not mothers. There’s simply not enough cake to share and nobody is going to be happy when we wreck families. And I can tell you that for every opinion in The fine article confines itself to revealing the frank bias of family court judges, but I’d like to add a bit of content: judicial bias against fathers is also judicial bias against mothers and children. Well that’s obvious. But the obvious problem with suggesting that there is in the letters column of the 9th of March. Despite all this, the justice ordered that the daughters spend alternate weekends and half the school holidays with their father. A 2015 study by the University of Warwick concluded that family courts do not discriminate against the father. It’s a can of worms that should have never been opened until we can “judge” more effectively. as we must remove any bias from the minds of judges, we must also allow them is that it runs the risk of pushing judges over the other side of that rope. I’ve lost count of the number of victimised parents, usually mothers, who’ve told me they are terrified to leave their violent relationships because they know that if they get drawn into the family law system, they cannot guarantee their children’s safety. In fact, perceived bias against men in family courts has, in large part, provided the so-called “Men’s Rights Movement” with momentum. Take a father out of a child’s life and the child is damaged, all but invariably. Rose - 14-May-20 @ 4:09 AM Celyn’s dad part: but eventually I had to leave with my 2 boys and stay at a family refuge hostel.Long story short, she was swearing at my children often calling them degrading names. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Gender Bias Task Force also uncovered substantial evidence of gender bias against mothers in family courts. In his report, former family court judge Richard Chisholm called this trap “the victim’s dilemma”, a position later articulated by former attorney general Robert McClelland: “Do I report family violence to the court and risk losing my children, or should I stay silent?”, This change in attitude was made explicit in a 2007 judgment from Justice Tim Carmody (who was, for a brief and controversial period, Queensland’s chief justice). In 1925, family courts evaluating cases of separation were guided by the Tender Years doctrine, which observed that kids under the age of 13 were more likely to be psychologically dependent on their mother for care. seen, it’s a desperately thin tightrope that the courts must negotiate, and bias, maybe there isn’t. The remaining bias in family court is related to money. According to Slate, bias against fathers when it came to child custody was quite common in the past. The lack of transparency about how these decisions are made has allowed a dangerous narrative to prevail: that the system is biased against fathers. But I still feel that the title is appropriate, as it reflects the ambiguous nature of the debate as to whether or not the family courts show bias towards mothers or fathers. She says: “There is evidence of an increasing willingness in recent case law to transfer the residency of children from “alienating” mothers to their fathers. “I will never forget the first time we had to drop her back to him. First she denies that family court outcomes disproportionately treat fathers worse than mothers. They land in my inbox every week. The simple and short answer is yes, there is a perceived bias against fathers but i do not feel it is a bias held only by the courts, It extends far beyond that and I hope to be able to go someway to proving that to you albeit with anecdotal evidence. Sadly there is far too much information available to the general public and professionals about personality disorders. Since that notion is wholly subjective, an undefinable rule with no standards or accountability, in practice it rests on the personal whim or bias of the family court. However, she warns that increased judicial willingness to contemplate transferring children’s residence from “alienating mothers” to their fathers’ risks overlooking abuse by fathers and transferring the child into the care of the abuser himself. See where I’m going? here last Friday. Submit your details below, and we’ll arrange a free, no-obligation call back at a time to suit you. Whether that be a man abusing women or a woman abusing children, no matter the abuser, the judgement and subsequent actions are always the same. However, society has changed. Anyone that has had their child taken from them will be irrational and not themselves. Are family courts biased? Yes the family court system is broken and needs reform. In 2016, in the peer-reviewed legal journal, Laws, Griffith University criminologist Samantha Jeffries wrote that in family court judgments, domestic violence was “ignored or minimised, reconstructed as inconsequential” or passed off as mutual violence, where both parents are equally at fault. With it, parental roles and the court’s opinion on parental roles have changed. Getting caught up in the family court system can be one of the most daunting experiences in a man’s life. Children with divorced or separated parents are suffering in a “broken” family court system which has a bias towards women, according to local father Grant Bowen. Legal practitioners openly stated that they knew which family report writers to go to if they were representing a perpetrator. As can be favour of one side of the debate there is another opinion in favour of the But Court-Determined Custody Arrangements Are Still Strongly Anti-Father The reverse is true. (This is what I mean when I say fathers are biased against themselves.) Being a father trying to use the system, it would be very easy for me to say that the system is heavily biased against fathers. The mother of our child has been granted legal aid and all the other support that comes with being a victim of domestic abuse, all with no evidence. The legal climate is subject to change. She concludes: “A child at the receiving end of such an order might justifiably feel completely betrayed by the court system.”. Okay, all of The mother of our child has been granted legal aid and all the other support that comes with being a victim of domestic abuse, all with no evidence. She says that judicial assumptions that children reluctant to have contact have been brainwashed by the non-resident parent seem to be on the rise. However, despite these problems most of you have failed because you didn't take the time to learn how the system works." That’s human beings. As such, the majority of moms seeking custody … With over 40 years of family law advocacy, that started in law school, as well as comprehensive knowledge and experience in the area of shared equal parenting rights, Gene C. Colman vigorously fights against gender bias in divorce and separation proceedings. Jess Hill is an investigative reporter who is the author of the book on domestic violence See What You Made Me Do. She was the recipient of three of the 2015 Our Watch Walkley awards, including the Gold award for reporting on violence against women. If her husband applied for custody, she knew it was highly likely he would be granted unsupervised access. “Our research contradicted the perception that there is a bias in favor of women and that in determining custody and visitation, many judges and family service officers do not consider violence toward women relevant. what is, as I say, a serious topic, which can have extremely serious consequences. But that Both parties will always want more time, access, money, justice, etc. He no longer practises, but has instead earned a reputation as one of the UK's best-known family law bloggers. When I first started hearing these stories I didn’t believe they were part of a pattern. What is no-fault divorce - and should you wait for a no-fault divorce in the UK? On the 11th of March, for example, a letter from Jane Fortin, Emeritus professor of law at the University of Sussex, was published. the recent discussion in the letters section of The Guardian newspaper regarding the suggestion that “the Such stories are legion across Australia. That is not the courts. But it’s ok. You don’t need to respect abusers or have any empathy for them because an opinion has already been formed that they are obviously not a very nice person and therefore “probably”…….. Mothers and children get approached with unfounded suspicion, and children are suffering the cruel consequences. Mothers were seen as the primary caregivers and were often given custody, especially for children age seven and younger. First and foremost, we need to make this a system that is safe for children. To ensure we are the right fit, we need to make you aware that we cannot offer Legal aid. Said one: “When I worked in private practice we would look for report writers who don’t do that level of investigation, who don’t report on the violence because that was in our client’s [the perpetrator’s] interest.”. If my son says he does not want to visit his father then no court will force it. Nothing to do with gender. Additionally, men are awarded less support on average than mothers who are awarded support. Lucy thinks that’s because she was old enough for people to believe her. Prominent doctors have confided in me their horror at what they see happening to their patients in the system – especially to the children. For five years, Lucy had to spend one night a week with her father. Opinions are formed and then judgements based on those formed opinions. here last Friday: In 2001, a joint study by the family court and the University of Sydney found that the family law system had “tilted more and more against women, either by accident or design”. But there is a pyramid of harm.’. My son turns four soon. There is no presumption or a priori rule that even gross misbehaviour such as child sexual abuse ... puts up an insurmountable barrier in the way of having contact with a child victim.”. As far as both genders complaining post court proceeding. Legal aid is available to any woman who has evidence of physical or sexual abuse. disproportionately male judiciary is more likely to rule against abused women It boils down to whether it’s all a facade or not. Many argue there could have been a societal bias that led fathers to give up custody, rather than bias by the courts since most fathers give up custody without the intervention of the courts. the freedom to deal with cases without any preconceptions. But Parental Alienation most certainly does exist. Until the statistics tell us that more than 4 percent of divorced fathers are seeking custody through the Family Court system, there are few men who have such experience and proof of … "Yes there is bias, prejudice and discrimination in family court towards men. Just In his judgment, Justice Robert Benjamin of the Hobart family court accepted that the father had demonstrated “inappropriate” affection towards his daughter. An example would be the one-line statement citing 8 respondents to the study claiming that ‘ The system is biased towards the mother’ (Lee, 1991, p.36) followed by no further dialogue on this issue. Some names have been changed in this piece. It’s nothing more than the obvious. closer look at the topic I highlighted in my weekly review post Their eldest daughter had told child-protection workers that she loved her father and didn’t want to upset him, but wasn’t comfortable staying over at his house, particularly on her own. Many fathers we have represented can personally attest to experiencing a negative outcome in a custody dispute because of gender bias in the court system. The anti-violence campaigner Rosie Batty even told me that were it not for the family law system, she would hardly have any victims contacting her. I stress. I have put much thought into this debate as many have who work within the family law circuit and those of us men and women who have been mistreated and incorrectly judged. There once may have been a day where the United States court system was 100% unbiased, but if those days ever existed, they’re lost to the annals of courtroom history books.Long ago, there certainly was a time where women were oppressed in the courts, but with rampant cases against men for abuse, negligence, and carelessness, men have become the oppressed … and too often, the court … There is no excuse for an innocent man being deprived access to his children. The punishment for hostile parents could be extreme: they not only ran the risk of losing custody of their children, they could be blocked from seeing or even speaking to them for months. They seem to rule based a lot on tradition, rather than reality. A bias, against mothers who claim abuse, exists in Family Courts in several particular countries around the world; countries where parental alienation has become a ‘thing’. Fathers who can afford high priced representation will often come out better in court. Also the lord chief justice for family courts is a lead supported of father for justice, so any bias that may exist is certainly not in the favour of women. courts, in various capacities. This is the evidence. Nor am I surprised when I read that a family court judge has awarded custody of a 3-year-old girl to the father who has violently beaten her mother. First of all, apologies if you feel that the title of this post is somewhat flippant. Family law is no different. Trust me. 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