Australia
Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, Reconciliation Action Plan - May 2025 to May 2027.
The Courts’ vision for Reconciliation is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to have greater access to, and engagement with, a family court system which is attuned to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and considers broader perspectives in case management practices. The vision is achieved through connection and collaboration with the community and the engagement of the IFLOs employed at the Courts and supported through the office of the CEO and Principal Registrar of the Courts, David Pringle PSM. IFLOs are presently located in a number of locations within Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria. By doing so, the Courts seek to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander litigants to have an increased opportunity to fully participate in proceedings and create an accessible justice system for Australia’s First Peoples, within the Courts.
Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity, The Path to Justice: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Experience of the Courts (2016).
See p6: ‘this report is a summary of consultations undertaken by the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity. As such, the views expressed in the document are those of stakeholders who work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait women. The purpose of the document is to inform the thinking of the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity in its deliberations on matters relating to access to justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
At p. 7: The key pre-court issues consistently raised were:
•
Fear that reporting violence will mean that authorities will remove children;
•
Geographical barriers;
•
The impact of poor police responses;
•
Family and community pressure on women seeking to protect themselves and their children;
•
The complexity of legal problems experienced by Indigenous women;
•
Lack of access to legal assistance and advice; and
•
Lack of legal knowledge and understanding of their rights under the law.
At p7: ‘Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women had trouble communicating in the language of the justice system, adversely impacting on their ability to deal with police, engage with support services including legal representatives, and communicate with court staff and judicial officers.’
Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity Website.
The Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity is an advisory body formed to assist Australian courts, judicial officers and administrators to positively respond to the diverse needs of the judiciary, including the particular issues that arise in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. This website includes a number of useful resources and links.
LawAccess NSW, Representing Yourself – Apprehended Violence Orders.
An online resource with clear and comprehensive information about Apprehended Violence Orders in NSW, including:
•
types of AVO
•
the application process
•
going to court
•
after court
•
Victims Support Scheme
•
immigration issues
•
protection of children
•
defending an AVO
•
family law issues
LawInfo Northern Territory, Domestic Violence.
LawInfoNT is an open access website with plain language information about the law, including domestic violence. The information is presented in a variety of formats for easy comprehension. The domestic violence section sets out a series of commonly asked questions and answers relating to: the nature of DV, types of DVOs, applications for DVOs, protection of children, property damage, breach of DVO, other support services.
Legal Aid ACT, Domestic and Family Violence.
Legal Aid ACT’s Domestic Violence and Personal Protection Order Unit offers a service to assist with:
•
applications for DVOs
•
understanding and responding to DVOs
•
non-legal solutions and support services
Legal Aid Queensland, Domestic and Family Violence.
This section of the Legal Aid Qld website provides information about: the nature of DFV, applying for a DFV protection order, the types of protection orders, children and protection orders, complying with a protection order, DFV duty lawyer services, and useful factsheets to help applicants and respondents navigate the legal system.
Legal Aid Western Australia, Family violence and your safety.
This section of the website helps users to understand the nature of family violence, the help available including protection orders, and how the family law deals with cases involving family violence.
Legal Services Commission of South Australia, Domestic Violence Advice.
The Commission provides services free of charge to assist with domestic violence matters, including:
•
intervention orders
•
the victim’s role and rights in the criminal justice process
•
family law matters
•
child welfare matters
•
credit, debt and housing matters
•
immigration matters arising as a result of domestic violence
•
application for legal aid or referrals to other services.
National Legal Aid, Family Violence Law Help.
A national online resource to: assist people affected by domestic and family violence; promote State and Territory advocacy and support services; and clearly explain the operation of Australia’s various laws and courts in domestic and family violence matters.
Self-Represented Litigants - Judicial Actions
There are steps judicial officers can take to ensure that self-represented litigants are afforded procedural fairness and access to justice while maintaining their independence and neutrality. The following actions are identified in Australian state and territory bench books. They serve as a non-exhaustive guide to assist judicial officers in exercising their discretion in proceedings involving self-represented litigants (SRL). For specific legislative requirements on limits to cross-examination where a defendant is self-represented or judicial duties/discretions to disallow improper questions, see 5.4 Legal representation and self-represented litigants statement.
Victoria Legal Aid, Violence, abuse and personal safety.
This webpage provides information about violent behaviour, abuse and personal safety, including Family violence intervention orders and the Commonwealth Family Violence and Cross-Examination of Parties Scheme.
International
Lee, Kaofeng and Ian Harris, How to Gather Technology Abuse Evidence for Court, Self-represented Litigants Series, Safety Net Project at the National Network to End Domestic Violence (February 2018).
This is a resource to assist self-represented litigants to gather evidence of their experience of technology abuse in a form that will be allowed by a court. It also provides links to additional resources including information about documenting technology abuse and technology safety. Note however that this is an American resource and the helpline number provided is unlikely to be available to those calling from Australia.
The introduction reads: If someone is using technology like text messages, email, or social media (like Facebook) to harass you, this guide will help you “capture” the evidence of the harassment, so you can bring it to court. You might think you can just show the judge your phone in court—but you probably won’t be allowed to just show your device. Even if you are allowed, you could risk the court taking your device as evidence. To be sure the judge considers your evidence and that you don’t lose your phone (or other device), you need to gather evidence in a form allowed by the court. This guide will provide suggestions on how to capture evidence that can be admitted in court from your devices, such as your cell phone, computer, or tablet (such as an iPad).
Australia
Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, Reconciliation Action Plan - May 2025 to May 2027.
The Courts’ vision for Reconciliation is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to have greater access to, and engagement with, a family court system which is attuned to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and considers broader perspectives in case management practices. The vision is achieved through connection and collaboration with the community and the engagement of the IFLOs employed at the Courts and supported through the office of the CEO and Principal Registrar of the Courts, David Pringle PSM. IFLOs are presently located in a number of locations within Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria. By doing so, the Courts seek to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander litigants to have an increased opportunity to fully participate in proceedings and create an accessible justice system for Australia’s First Peoples, within the Courts.
Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity, The Path to Justice: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Experience of the Courts (2016).
See p6: ‘this report is a summary of consultations undertaken by the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity. As such, the views expressed in the document are those of stakeholders who work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait women. The purpose of the document is to inform the thinking of the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity in its deliberations on matters relating to access to justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
At p. 7: The key pre-court issues consistently raised were:
•
Fear that reporting violence will mean that authorities will remove children;
•
Geographical barriers;
•
The impact of poor police responses;
•
Family and community pressure on women seeking to protect themselves and their children;
•
The complexity of legal problems experienced by Indigenous women;
•
Lack of access to legal assistance and advice; and
•
Lack of legal knowledge and understanding of their rights under the law.
At p7: ‘Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women had trouble communicating in the language of the justice system, adversely impacting on their ability to deal with police, engage with support services including legal representatives, and communicate with court staff and judicial officers.’
Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity Website.
The Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity is an advisory body formed to assist Australian courts, judicial officers and administrators to positively respond to the diverse needs of the judiciary, including the particular issues that arise in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. This website includes a number of useful resources and links.
LawAccess NSW, Representing Yourself – Apprehended Violence Orders.
An online resource with clear and comprehensive information about Apprehended Violence Orders in NSW, including:
•
types of AVO
•
the application process
•
going to court
•
after court
•
Victims Support Scheme
•
immigration issues
•
protection of children
•
defending an AVO
•
family law issues
LawInfo Northern Territory, Domestic Violence.
LawInfoNT is an open access website with plain language information about the law, including domestic violence. The information is presented in a variety of formats for easy comprehension. The domestic violence section sets out a series of commonly asked questions and answers relating to: the nature of DV, types of DVOs, applications for DVOs, protection of children, property damage, breach of DVO, other support services.
Legal Aid ACT, Domestic and Family Violence.
Legal Aid ACT’s Domestic Violence and Personal Protection Order Unit offers a service to assist with:
•
applications for DVOs
•
understanding and responding to DVOs
•
non-legal solutions and support services
Legal Aid Queensland, Domestic and Family Violence.
This section of the Legal Aid Qld website provides information about: the nature of DFV, applying for a DFV protection order, the types of protection orders, children and protection orders, complying with a protection order, DFV duty lawyer services, and useful factsheets to help applicants and respondents navigate the legal system.
Legal Aid Western Australia, Family violence and your safety.
This section of the website helps users to understand the nature of family violence, the help available including protection orders, and how the family law deals with cases involving family violence.
Legal Services Commission of South Australia, Domestic Violence Advice.
The Commission provides services free of charge to assist with domestic violence matters, including:
•
intervention orders
•
the victim’s role and rights in the criminal justice process
•
family law matters
•
child welfare matters
•
credit, debt and housing matters
•
immigration matters arising as a result of domestic violence
•
application for legal aid or referrals to other services.
National Legal Aid, Family Violence Law Help.
A national online resource to: assist people affected by domestic and family violence; promote State and Territory advocacy and support services; and clearly explain the operation of Australia’s various laws and courts in domestic and family violence matters.
Self-Represented Litigants - Judicial Actions
There are steps judicial officers can take to ensure that self-represented litigants are afforded procedural fairness and access to justice while maintaining their independence and neutrality. The following actions are identified in Australian state and territory bench books. They serve as a non-exhaustive guide to assist judicial officers in exercising their discretion in proceedings involving self-represented litigants (SRL). For specific legislative requirements on limits to cross-examination where a defendant is self-represented or judicial duties/discretions to disallow improper questions, see 5.4 Legal representation and self-represented litigants statement.
Victoria Legal Aid, Violence, abuse and personal safety.
This webpage provides information about violent behaviour, abuse and personal safety, including Family violence intervention orders and the Commonwealth Family Violence and Cross-Examination of Parties Scheme.
International
Lee, Kaofeng and Ian Harris, How to Gather Technology Abuse Evidence for Court, Self-represented Litigants Series, Safety Net Project at the National Network to End Domestic Violence (February 2018).
This is a resource to assist self-represented litigants to gather evidence of their experience of technology abuse in a form that will be allowed by a court. It also provides links to additional resources including information about documenting technology abuse and technology safety. Note however that this is an American resource and the helpline number provided is unlikely to be available to those calling from Australia.
The introduction reads: If someone is using technology like text messages, email, or social media (like Facebook) to harass you, this guide will help you “capture” the evidence of the harassment, so you can bring it to court. You might think you can just show the judge your phone in court—but you probably won’t be allowed to just show your device. Even if you are allowed, you could risk the court taking your device as evidence. To be sure the judge considers your evidence and that you don’t lose your phone (or other device), you need to gather evidence in a form allowed by the court. This guide will provide suggestions on how to capture evidence that can be admitted in court from your devices, such as your cell phone, computer, or tablet (such as an iPad).