Abused Mothers’ Safety Concerns and Court Mediators’ Custody Recommendations

Abstract

This study adds to research on family court’s response to custody in the context of intimate partner abuse (IPA). Mediation is often used to assist family court with custody negotiation; however, debate exists in the field regarding its use when IPA exists. The following study examines experiences with court mediation among a sample of victimized mothers who divorced abusive husbands. Mixed-method data were collected from 19 women. Findings demonstrate that abuse is rarely considered in custody recommendations, as most court mediators prefer joint custody. Implications for the ongoing debate, as well as future directions for research, are discussed.

Post-Separation Abuse of Women and their Children: Boundary-Setting and Family Court Utilization among Victimized Mothers

“…While many of the responses from the court were likely a result of a disbelief that IPV perpetration is relevant to fathering or a disbelief of mothers’ reports, as was suggested in our previous research with this sample (Rivera, Sullivan, & Zeoli, 2012; Rivera, Zeoli, & Sullivan, 2012), it is possible that some of the court responses that women believed put their children in danger were based largely on legal requirements. An examination of state laws as they are applied to child custody disputes in cases involving violence must be undertaken to determine how specific laws impact safety.…”

“…That most women do not have independent evidence of IPV is not uncommon; a study in Australia found that most allegations of IPV in child custody proceedings are not substantiated with objective evidence (Moloney, 2008). In our previous research with this sample, we found that a lack of independent evidence of IPV often lead court personnel to dismiss the allegation (Rivera, Zeoli, & Sullivan, 2012). Research by Kernic and colleagues (2005) found that even in custody cases in which allegations of IPV were made and independent evidence, such as police records, was available, this evidence often is not included in child custody case files.…”

‘All Over Now?’ The Ongoing Relational Consequences of Domestic Abuse through Children's Contact Arrangements

“…It also risks marginalising non‐abusing mothers as competent parents, which in turn may jeopardise any assessment or management of risk. Similar findings are reported in an Irish study (see Holt, ) and in a US study about custody mediation in the context of domestic violence (see Rivera et al ., ; Zeoli et al ., ).…”

Are we in this Together? Post‐Separation Co‐Parenting of Fathers with and without a History of Domestic Violence

“…This is not the case. Advocates have expressed concerns that DV perpetration is given insufficient weight in custody and access decisions, with focus instead placed on the rights of fathers and the potential benefits of father‐child contact (Harrison, ; Jaffe et al, ; Rivera et al, ). A recent study in Canada (where legislation requires consideration of past family violence in making decisions relevant to a child's best interests) found that judges and custody experts often expressed the view that ‘the fact that he has been violent in his conjugal relationship does not necessarily make him a bad parent’ (p. 287), and that ongoing conflict between separated parents is not sufficient reason to refuse joint custody (Godbout et al, ).…”