Report Endorsements

Endorsements

“Victims and survivors know all too well that domestic abuse doesn’t always end when a relationship does. This report sheds light on the prevalence of economic abuse as a tool of coercive control, highlighting that abuse often continues post-separation, including within the Family Court and in financial proceedings.

 “In recent years through the Pathfinder Courts – currently in four court areas – there have been strides in the Family Court’s understanding of the impact of domestic abuse on each child. This type of working needs to be expanded, and it must be built on to incorporate a clear understanding of post-separation abuse within financial proceedings.

“It is also vital that the Family Court recognises economic abuse as domestic abuse, in line with the law, and acts accordingly. The findings in this report underline the urgent need for an abuse-informed Family Court to fulfil the ambitions of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, including recognising children as victims in their own right.

“I am grateful to Resolution for this insightful report that I hope will accelerate much needed change.”

Nicole Jacobs, Domestic Abuse Commissioner

“I congratulate Resolution on this significant contribution to the ongoing discussion of how, and in what circumstances, processes and outcomes in the Financial Remedies Court can be improved for victims of domestic abuse.  It is clear from the results of the survey put out by Resolution as a precursor to this report that a very significant number of those professionals responding believe that procedural and cultural improvements should be considered further.

“The FLBA recognises the long-term impact of domestic abuse and is supportive of a wide-ranging and detailed assessment of the areas of law and procedure that would benefit from a ‘cultural shift’ to acknowledge and reduce that impact.

“The FLBA looks forward to working with Resolution to consolidate the hard work, time and effort which has gone into producing this report, and to offer support to bring about many of the achievable aims and objectives which the report identifies so comprehensively.  The FLBA will contribute, as a key stakeholder, to this ongoing and important debate.”

 James Roberts KC, Chair of the FLBA (on behalf of FLBA Money and Property Sub-Committee).

“The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 finally recognised economic and financial abuse as forms of abuse. Victims must be protected in Financial Remedy courts, and we appreciate Resolution’s extensive research and recommendations on this issue.

“We agree that a cultural change is essential to protect these parties and prevent abusers from using the court process to continue their abuse. However, this progress will be limited without increased legal aid rates to ensure the long-term sustainability of the family legal aid sector. The report echoes our call for changes to the means test and thresholds. We also urge the government to increase fees for the Qualified Legal Representative Scheme to prevent victims from being cross-examined by their abusers.

“Protecting domestic abuse victims at all stages of the family court process is crucial. These vulnerable individuals often face court proceedings without representation. We look forward to supporting Resolution in the next stage of their report.”

 The Law Society

“This is a comprehensive report prepared by Resolution and focuses on the much-ignored interplay between domestic abuse and financial issues associated with separation and divorce. The report sets out a series of recommendations for the Financial Remedies Court and provides a timely contribution on how to tackle all forms of violence and abuse against women and girls.

“The report rightly highlights that the family justice system is underfunded and draws on the insights and experiences of specialist family law barristers and representatives from the Family Law Bar Association.

“The report also raises concerns about the lack of availability of legal aid. The Bar Council’s spending review submission to government has stressed the importance of access to legal support in particular early legal advice and the widening of the scope of legal aid to ensure that both the complainants of abuse as well as alleged perpetrators have access to full and proper advice and representation.

“We look forward to continued collaboration to help bring about positive and meaningful change.”

Barbara Mills KC, Vice-Chair of the Bar Council

“This report reflects the experiences of the women we advise. Survivors or domestic abuse face many different barriers to resolving financial arrangements after separation.

“The law and justice processes should be designed to protect them from abuse and hold abusers to account. It is currently too easy for abusers to use the system to further their abuse.

“This report is wide-ranging and tries to address issues of procedural fairness, access to justice, and much needed legislative reform such as for cohabitees.  The need for change is significant and we welcome Resolution’s ambitious aim to see fairer outcomes for victims of abuse.”

 Olive Craig, Senior Legal Officer at Rights of Women

“Resolution’s report could not be timelier. The government has made a commitment to halve violence against women and girls in the next decade. This must include a distinct strategy for tackling economic abuse, which is currently being used by abusers to devastate the lives of 5.5 million UK women.

“Victim-survivors tell us all the time that domestic abusers are weaponsing divorce and financial remedy proceedings to coerce and control, with no safeguards in place to prevent this form of abuse. This is further compounded by restrictive legal aid means tests and a scarcity of legal aid solicitors, which forces victim-survivors to navigate complex proceedings without legal advice or support. Even more, they are forced to face the abuser alone.

“Despite the devastating impact of economic abuse, the courts currently fail to consider this when determining the division of assets. These prospects are even worse for cohabiting victim-survivors who have no legal rights or protections based on their relationship status. As a result of these failures, victim-survivors are left without the means to become free from a dangerous abuser and rebuild their lives post separation.

“We support the report’s recommendations to amend existing civil court rules and procedures to consider economic abuse, to properly safeguard victim-survivors, and enforce court orders.  We also support its calls for the government to improve victim-survivors’ access to legal advice and representation, and urgently repair a broken legal aid system. These proposed changes will help deliver fairer outcomes for victim-survivors.

“We are also calling on the government to exempt victim-survivors from the legal aid means test, so that all victim-survivors can access the advice and representation they so desperately need. The government must also deliver its promised cohabitation law reform, so all victim-survivors have legal rights on separation. Lastly, alongside UK Finance, we ask the government to urgently convene an economic abuse task force, which consider legal protections against joint mortgages abuse.”

Sam Smethers, interim CEO of Surviving Economic Abuse