While the festive season is often celebrated as a time of joy and goodwill, for many victims of domestic and family violence, it brings heightened fear and uncertainty. The annual surge in violence during this season serves as a sobering reminder of the challenges victims of domestic violence face behind closed doors, explains Attwood Marshall Lawyers’ Family Law Associate, Laura Dolan.
Everyone has the right to feel safe at home, but that’s not always the case for people who are in an unsafe or controlling relationship, and certain conditions over the holiday season exacerbate the risk to these people. Spending more time at home, being isolated from friends, family, and colleagues, and the added financial pressures of the holiday season are just some of the factors that can escalate violent behaviour. Coupled with over-indulgence in alcohol and drugs, these circumstances create a dangerous and volatile environment.
Domestic Violence charities and government services report domestic and family violence increases by, on average, a third over the holiday period. That is largely reflective of yearly increases in domestic and family violence across the country, with violence against victim-survivors increasingly escalating to their deaths.
Domestic and family violence has claimed 143 lives in the last five years across New South Wales where more than 44 per cent were killed by an intimate partner, while almost 35 per cent were killed by a child, parent or other family member. Meanwhile, last year Queensland saw an increase of 50 per cent in domestic and family violence-related deaths.
Women continue to bear the brunt of domestic violence as figures released earlier this year by the Australian Institute of Criminology revealed a rise in female intimate partner homicide .In 2022‒23, 16 per cent of all homicide incidents were intimate partner homicides (IPH), and 89 per cent of these were perpetrated against a female victim aged 18 years or over.
This year so far, Counting Dead Women Australia who track “every known death due to violence against women” says the number of women killed by domestic and family violence has reached 71 as of December.
Tackling Domestic and Family Violence
Domestic and family violence is not just physical violence, it is much more complex than that, and can present itself as psychological abuse, coercive control, financial abuse, and emotional abuse, just to name a few.
Financial abuse and coercive control have been in focus over the past 12 months from a political and legislative standpoint, to try to tackle domestic and family violence.
Financial Abuse
This year a parliamentary inquiry was set up to examine the role of banks in preventing financial abuse.
The inquiry will examine the effectiveness of existing laws and the role that banks can play in identifying and preventing financial abuse in Australia. Financial abuse includes actions aimed at controlling or sabotaging access to economic resources, resulting in emotional harm or fear. It is one of the more hidden forms of domestic and family violence.
The big banks have already ramped up their focus on stamping out financial abuse, with some banks confirming they will cut off customers who exert undue control over another person’s finances.
From November last year, any NAB customer identified as engaging in financial abuse would lose access to their bank accounts or even have them cancelled. NAB bank updated its terms and conditions with a new reference to “unacceptable account conduct”. The bank also intends to block abusive messages sent alongside payment transfers, noting that they have blocked more than 200,000 abusive transactions since 2022. Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, and ANZ have also reviewed their terms and conditions referencing abusive transactions to address financial abuse.
Criminalising Coercive Control
Criminalising coercive control was a significant focus in recent years. A survey conducted by Monash University sought the participation of over 1,200 domestic violence victim-survivors who shared their experience and views on the criminalisation of coercive control.
The survey received remarkably consistent results, with 93 per cent of respondents agreeing that criminalisation would improve community awareness of coercive control.
72 per cent of respondents believed that making coercive control a criminal offence would achieve greater safety for victim-survivors.
This year, NSW has criminalised coercive control under the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Coercive Control) Act 2022 and Queensland under the Criminal Law (Coercive Control and Affirmative Consent) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023.
In South Australia, the government has committed to criminalising coercive control, whilst in Victoria coercive behaviour is criminalised under general family violence laws. Western Australia announced that it would take a phased approach to criminalising coercive control. Further commitments to tackling domestic and family violence include:
- the NSW Government announcing a six-point plan outlined in the NSW Women’s Safety Commissioner Strategic Plan 2024-2027, which includes putting people with lived experience at the centre;
- enhancing oversight, monitoring and accountability;
- promoting safe, accessible and integrated responses;
- a greater focus on primary prevention;
- strengthening workforces and informal support networks;
- and supporting women’s economic safety and security with a new advisory body with victim-survivors at its centre. The advisory body will focus on prevention measures and increasing the capacity of the state’s domestic violence (DV) support workforce.
In Queensland earlier this year, the government committed to ending all forms of domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV) with new funding of more than $118 million for the next four years.
The money will go to the DFSV sector to support frontline services and violence-prevention programs and follows on from the Miles Government’s financial boost of $36 million in April. This takes total funding to $154.4 million over four years.
And just last month, the Family Law Amendment Bill 2024 passed through the Senate ensuring, for the first time, that family and domestic violence can be taken into consideration in property settlements for separating families.
The amendments will:
- ensure the care and housing needs of children are considered in financial and property decisions;
- ensure financial information is disclosed at the earliest opportunity to promote the early resolution of disputes;
- expand the court’s ability to use less adversarial approaches in all types of proceedings;
- establish a regulatory framework for Children’s Contact Services to ensure the provision of safe and child-focussed services for children whose families are unable to safely manage contact arrangements on their own.
The new law will come into force on 29 May 2025.
Attwood Marshall Lawyers – helping families during difficult times
Our dedicated family lawyers understand the sensitive nature and urgency of matters involving domestic violence.
If you are experiencing domestic and family violence, including financial abuse, help and support is available.
If you are in immediate danger, please call 000. The police can immediately attend to you and issue paperwork on the spot to protect you from the perpetrator, including issuing a temporary protection order if necessary.
There are also several hard-working support services available to help women and children leave an unsafe home, and support services for men and perpetrators of violence who want to change their behaviour.
Here are some trusted support services:
- 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732): confidential information, counselling, and support service.
- DV Connect (1800 811 811): a state-wide hotline offering free, professional assistance such as counselling, intervention, transport and emergency accommodation.
- DV Connect Mensline (1800 600 636)
- No to Violence Men’s referral service (1300 766 491)
- Lifeline (13 11 14) for crisis support
- Be There app, a bystander empowerment tool which provides information and resources.
If you need help with making an application for a DVO or other issues related to leaving a violent relationship, our compassionate and experienced family lawyers can help you navigate the legal system and apply for the necessary orders.
For more information or a confidential discussion with our family law team, please contact our Family Law Department Manager, Donna Tolley, on direct line 07 5506 8241, email dtolley@attwoodmarshall.com.au or free call our 24/7 hotline any time on 1800 621 071.
