Tim Watts (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the motion moved today by the member for Moreton, and thank him for his commitment to shining a light on yet another way that our system is currently letting down victims and survivors of domestic and family violence. I am pleased that Labor has been pushing for changes to the family law system in this area. We made it our election policy to ensure that no victim of family violence need be cross-examined by their abuser in a courtroom. We will continue to push for these changes because it is unacceptable that a victim of physical or emotional abuse at the hands of a partner, or former partner, should have to continue to experience that abuse simply to seek a resolution.

The matters that are heard by the Family Court or the Federal Circuit Court often involve the most extreme cases of abuse. When non-abusive relationships break down, those people are more likely to be able to come to an agreement themselves about how to amicably terminate a relationship—how to sort out property issues and child care arrangements—without involving the courts. What we are seeing play out in the Family Court is often the other end of the spectrum. One party to a family law matter may have suffered such a severe level of ongoing abuse to the point that they might choose to receive no property settlement or lose care and responsibility for their child simply to avoid having to face their abuser in court, or maybe even just to avoid being in the same courtroom as their abuser. But our current system means that victims of family violence not only have to be in the same courtroom as their abuser but can, indeed, be cross-examined by their abuser. They can be questioned about the most intimate parts of their lives, have personal experiences used against them and be subjected to the subtle tactics of emotional abuse throughout this process.

I once heard a story about a perpetrator of family violence who would wear the same piece of clothing every time he physically assaulted his wife and children. Over time she developed an instant emotional reaction to seeing that piece of clothing. That man wore that piece of clothing in the courtroom when dealing with the end of their relationship. Needless to say, she was terrified and unable to give proper evidence on the day. It is horrific that our court system would allow someone to be put in such a vulnerable position and be forced to endure that kind of emotional abuse. She was re-traumatised from that experience.

Women's Legal Services Australia conducted a survey in September 2015 that tells us that this experience is common amongst victims of family violence going through the court system. Many victims of family violence experienced further violence in the courtroom. Perpetrators use the family law system as a tool and an opportunity for them to continue to exercise power and control over their victims. The fear of confronting their perpetrator means that victims do not proceed to trial. Instead, they reach out-of-court settlements or agreement to consent orders that are often not in their best interest or in the best interest of their children.

Victims of family violence are likely to receive less than 40 per cent of a property pool at the dissolution of a relationship. That is why Labor is pushing for these protections. We believe in putting appropriate safeguards in place so that victims can enforce their legal rights and have a greater chance of becoming financially independent and live a life free of a cycle of violence. To make these protections possible, the government, in addition to legislative reform, need to reconsider their unfair cuts to legal assistance. This is one of the first issue that I spoke about in this parliament—the cuts in the first Abbott budget to Community Legal Centres support. Indeed, it was in this very room.

When I was asking questions about that first Abbott budget, it was very clear to me that, at the time that those cuts were made, there was very little appreciation within the government or among parliamentarians of the volume of work that Community Legal Centres do in addressing family violence. They are on the front line of this scourge. The cuts particularly from that first budget had a real-world consequence on women seeking protection from the courts and fleeing violent partners. In addition, Legal Aid makes it possible for perpetrators of family violence to always have access to legal representation, so that proper evidence can be obtained without direct cross examination. That is why Labor committed $43.2 million over four years to avoid the re-traumatisation of victims and survivors from being cross-examined by alleged perpetrators personally and, instead, provide for both parties to be legally represented. In March last year, Labor committed over $40 million to frontline legal services to assist victims of family violence. Instead, the government has continued with their unfair cuts of millions of dollars.

If the government are truly committed to ending the scourge of family violence—and I believe the will of those opposite—they need to match this will with funding and they need to end their unfair cuts that reduce access to justice for Australia's most vulnerable people. No-one should have to go through the court system seeking either the protection of their interests or the protection of their physical safety alone. People need representation.

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