Treating Children as Full Rights Bearers: Independent Legal Representation for Children in Family Violence and/or Resist-Refuse Contact Cases – Family Violence and Family Law Brief, Issue #20

Date: March 2023

The Honourable Donna Martinson, KC

Note a French translation of the brief is in process.

This Learning Brief is part of the Alliance of Canadian Research Centres’ project “Supporting the Health of Survivors of Family Violence in Family Law Proceedings” funded by Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

Case Bulletins – Family Violence & Family Law Alliance (Issue No. 1)

Date: May 2022

Dr. Margaret Jackson

Three family law cases from the Supreme Court of Canada were examined in a series of case bulletins because they profile issues in family law since the amended Divorce Act (2021) came into force.

Part 1: Michel v Graydon, September 2020 SCC 24 (CanLii): Financial abuse issue

Part 2: Colucci v. Colucci, June 2021 SCC 24 (CanLii): Child support issue

Part 3: Barendregt v. Grebliunas, December 2, 2021 (CanLii): Relocation issue

These Bulletins were prepared by Dr. Margaret Jackson Director of the FREDA Centre, and Professor Emerita School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University on behalf of the Alliance of Canadian Research Centres on Gender-Based Violence.

Supporting Survivors through Court Reform: Assessing the Role of Integrated and Specialized Courts for Family Law in British Columbia – Family Violence & Family Law Brief, Issue #11

Date: August 2021

Chelsea Pang

This Learning Brief is part of the Alliance of Canadian Research Centres’ project “Supporting the Health of Survivors of Family Violence in Family Law Proceedings” – funded by Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

The 2021 Divorce Act: Using statutory interpretation principles to support substantive equality for women and children in family violence cases – Family Violence & Family Law Brief, Issue #5

Date: June 2021

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Professor Emerita Margaret Jackson

This Learning Brief is part of the Alliance of Canadian Research Centres’ project “Supporting the Health of Survivors of Family Violence in Family Law Proceedings” – funded by Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

Executive Summary of Why Can’t Everyone Just Get Along?: How BC’s family law system puts survivors in danger – Family Violence & Family Law Brief, Issue #2

Date: March 2021

Haley Hrymak & Kim Hawkins

This Learning Brief is part of the Alliance of Canadian Research Centres’ project “Supporting the Health of Survivors of Family Violence in Family Law Proceedings” – funded by Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

Implementing Children’s Participation Rights in Family Law and Child Welfare Court Proceedings

Date: November 2020

Coordinators: Professor Emerita Margaret Jackson and The Honourable Donna Martinson
Research Associates (with equal contributions made): Melissa Gregg, Chelsea Pang, and Sarah Yercich
The FREDA Centre, School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University
Funded by the BC Office of the Representative for Children and Youth

Coordinated simultaneous posting of the report is occurring with the BC Office of the Representative of Children and Youth.  Their website link for the report is: https://rcybc.ca/reports-and-publications/child-participation-in-family-law-and-child-welfare-court-proceedings/

Family Violence and Parenting Assessments: Law, Skills and Social Context – Report Highlights, Report Brief

Date: November 2019

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Professor Emerita Margaret Jackson

Canadian Bar Association, B.C. Branch Children’s Law Section Report Launch, Marking National Child Day

Family Violence and Parenting Assessments: Law, Skills and Social Context

Date: June 2019

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Professor Emerita Margaret Jackson

Young People as Humans in Family Court: A Child Rights Approach to Legal Representation

Date: 2018

Available via WestLaw, Heinonline, or LexusNexus

The Honourable Donna J. Martinson & Caterina E. Tempesta
Published in the Canadian Journal of Family Law, Vol. 31, Issue 1 (2018)

Family Violence and Evolving Judicial Roles: Judges as Equality Guardians in Family Law Cases

Date: 2017

Available via WestLaw, Heinonline, or LexusNexus

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Professor Emerita Margaret Jackson
Published in the Canadian Journal of Family Law, Vol. 30, Issue 1 (2017)

Looking the Gift Horse in the Mouth: An Examination of the Canadian Approach to Criminal Restitution in Case of Sexual Violence

Date: January 2016

By Michelle Lawrence, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Victoria

Risk of Future Harm: Family Violence and Information Sharing Between Family and Criminal Courts – Final Research Report

Date: January 2016

Research Project – Canadian Observatory on the Justice System’s Response to Intimate Partner Violence (January 14, 2016)
The Honourable Donna Martinson & Dr. Margaret Jackson

French Version: Le risque de préjudice futur: La violence familiale et l’échange de renseignements entre les tribunaux de la famille et de juridiction criminelle

The Intersection between Criminal Law, Family Law and Child Protection in Domestic Violence Cases

Date: May 2015

The following Study Leave Report was submitted to the Chief Justice of Ontario and the Canadian Judicial Council by the Honourable Justice Bonnie Croll of the Superior Court of  Ontario in 2015: “The Intersection between Criminal Law, Family Law and Child Protection in Domestic Violence Cases”.  The report was written by Justice Croll along with three of her law students and cited in the final RISK paper by Martinson and Jackson. It is now publicly available here:

Risk of Future Harm: Family Violence and Information Sharing Between Family and Criminal Courts – Research Project – Summary of Findings and Conclusions

Date: November 2015

Prepared for the Fifth B.C. Justice Summit (November 2015)
By the Honourable Donna Martinson & Dr. Margaret Jackson

Cross Border Parental Child Abduction – Social Context Issues

Date: May 2014

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Melissa Gregg (May 2014)

Children’s Legal Rights to be Heard in Cross-Border Parental Child Abduction Cases

Date: May 2014

The Honourable Donna Martinson (May 2014)

The Canadian Approach to Direct Judicial Communication: Making Concurrent Proceedings Involving the Same Family Operate Effectively

Date: May 2014

The Honourable Donna Martinson (May 2014)

Independent and Impartial Parenting Assessments: The Legal Framework and Best Practice Issues

Date: December 2013

The Honourable Donna Martinson (December 2013)

Judicial Leadership and Domestic Violence Cases: Judges Can Make a Difference

Date: 2012

The Honourable Donna Martinson & Dr. Margaret Jackson (2012)

Domestic Violence Program Development for Judges – April 2012 British Columbia Community Consultation Report

Date: 2012

The Honourable Donna Martinson (2012)

Myths and Stereotypes in Family Law

Date: 2014

The FREDA Centre (2014)

Note: The Honourable Donna Martinson’s presentations can be found here.

Building Supports Phase III: Policy Component – Immigration, Refugee, and Settlement; Housing; and Health and Policy Brief Summary

Date: 2018

Building Supports Project Team (2018)

Erased Realities: The Violence of Racism in the Lives of Immigrant and Refugee Girls of Colour

Date: 2001

Yasmin Jiwani, Nancy Janovicek, & Angela Cameron (2001)

Intersecting Inequalities: Immigrant Women of Colour, Violence & Health Care

Date: 2001

Yasmin Jiwani with assistance of Kelly D’Aoust, Suki Grewal, Benita Bunjun, Harjit Kaur, & Tracy Conley (2001)

Mapping Violence, A Work in Progress

Date: 2001

Yasmin Jiwani (2001)

Aboriginal Women & Women of Colour’s Access to Information and Opportunities for Contract Work

Date: 1999

Ad Hoc Committee on Accessing Information about Contract Work (1999)

The Feasibility of Seniors Counselling Seniors Experiencing Abuse: A Community Needs Assessment

Date: 1998

The 411 Seniors Centre Society (1998)

Rural Women and Violence: A Study of Two Communities in British Columbia

Date: 1998

Yasmin Jiwani with the assistance of Shelley Moore & Patricia Kachuk (1998)

Trapped: “Holding on to the Knife’s Edge” – Economic Violence Against Filipino Migrant/Immigrant Women

Date: 1997

The Philippine Women Centre of B.C. (1997)

Second Stage Support Group-Moving on From the Abusive Relationship

Date: 1997

Fran Bourassa & Mary Martin Sharma (1997)

Breaking the Cycle: A Parenting Guide for Single Mothers of Children Who Have Witnessed Domestic Violence

Date: 1997

Janet Eriksen, Angela Henderson, Margot Davidson, & Sharon Ogden (1997)

Parenting Support Group for Women Who Have Experienced Abuse: Facilitator’s Manual 

Date: 1997

Angela Henderson, Janet Ericksen, & Sharon Ogden (1997)

Falling through the Gaps Gaps in Services for Young Women Survivors of Sexual Assault

Date: 1997

Zara Suleman & Holly McLarty (1997)

Policing Violence Against Women in Relationships: An Examination of Police Response to Violence Against Women in British Columbia

Date: 1997

Yasmin Jiwani & Lawrence Buhagiar (1997)

A Needs Assessment for an Aboriginal Women’s Transition House

Date: 1996

Sharlene Frank (1996)

Violent Matters: An Annotated Guide to Selected Canadian English-Language Magazines 1945-1960

Date: 1996

Diane Barbara Purvey (1996)

The North Island Network to Resist and Heal from Violence

Date: 1995

Helen Dempster (1995)

Not So Peaceable a Kingdom: A Preliminary Guide to Selected English Canadian Theses on Violence

Date: 1995

Diane Barbara Purvey (1995)

A Yukon Pilot Project on Men’s Violence Against Women

Date: 1995

Jon Leah Hopkins with J. Forde, J. Hopkins, & S. L. Bains (1995)

Spousal Abuse in the South Asian Community

Date: 1994

Raminder Dosanjh, Surinder Deo, & Surjeet Sidhu (1994)

Violence Prevention and the Girl Child

Date: 1999

Yasmin Jiwani with Kelly Gorkoff, Helene Berman, Gail Taylor, Glenda Vardy-Dell, & Sylvie Normandeau (1999)

Violence Against Marginalized Girls: A Review of the Current Literature

Date: 1998

Yasmin Jiwani (1998)

Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Girls and Young Women: A Review of Select Literature and Initiatives

Date: 1999

Yasmin Jiwani with Susan M. Brown (1999)

Mapping Resistance on the Body Intersections of Violence, Anorexia and Bulimia in Girls

Date: 1998

Shelley Moore (1998)

Swallowing the Hurt Exploring the Links between Family Violence, Anorexia and Bulimia

Date: 2001

Shelley Moore with Kelly D’Aoust, Yasmin Jiwani, Donna Robertson, & Christina Savage (2001)

The following publications are available from FREDA upon request – to request a copy, please contact us.

Bourassa, Fran and Mary M. Sharma. (1997) The Second Stage Support Group: Moving On from the Abusive Relationship. Details of the progress and outcome of a second stage group conducted at Emily Murphy Transition House.

Brockman, J. and D. Chunn, editors. (1997) Proceedings of the No Disclosure Workshop. A discussion of strategies designed to ensure the successful implementation of Bill C-46 (the production of records in sexual offence proceedings).

Chambers, Susan. (1998) An Analysis of Trends Concerning Violence against Women: A Preliminary Case Study of Vancouver. This report outlines the assumptions and methodological issues underlying the recent decline in police statistics on cases involving violence against women. It contrasts these statistics with others, and with the views of front-line workers.

Charlesworth, Sonya. (1999) Constructing Abuse: The Experiences of Mothers and Court-Ordered Child Custody and Access Assessments. A study that examines how the presence of abuse within a parental relationship is investigated by mental health professionals in child custody matters.

Dempster, Helen. (1995) The North Island Network to Resist and Heal from Violence. This report documents the lack of resources available for women survivors of violence living in the Comox Valley and nearby rural areas of BC.

Denike, Margaret and Sal Renshaw. (1999) Legislating Unreasonable Doubt: Bill C-46, Personal Records Disclosure and Sexual Equality. An analysis of the impact on health and social service providers of legislation concerning the production of records in sexual offence proceedings.

Dosanjh, Raminder, S. Deo and S. Sidhu. (1994) Spousal Abuse in the South Asian Community. A research report focusing on the experiences of immigrant and refugee South Asian women who have experienced violence. The report draws from interviews with 15 South Asian women and identifies the barriers that women face in accessing services and support.

Enarson, Elaine. (1998) Responding to Domestic Violence and Disaster: Guidelines for Women’s Services and Disaster Practitioners. This report summarizes a study of disaster preparedness in domestic violence programs.

Ericksen, Janet, et al. (1997) Breaking the Cycle: A Parenting Guide for Single Mothers of Children Who Have Witnessed Domestic Violence. This, the first of two reports, suggests techniques to achieve a healing and supportive environment.

The 411 Seniors’ Centre. (1998) The Feasibility of Seniors Counselling Seniors Experiencing Abuse: A Community Needs Assessment. A research project on ways the 411 Seniors’ Centre could better serve the needs of abused seniors.

Frank, Sharlene. (1996) A Needs Assessment for an Aboriginal Women’s Transition House. A report documenting the need for a First Nations transition house serving Northeast Vancouver Island.

Hare, Jan. (1997) Building Healthy Communities: An Aboriginal Family Violence Resource Guide. An analysis, outline, and directory of resources available to BC First Nations peoples.

Henderson, A., J. Ericksen and S. Ogden. (1997) The Parenting Support Group for Women Who Have Experienced Abuse: Facilitator’s Manual. This, the second report in the series, is directed to facilitators of support groups for single mothers whose children have witnessed violence.

Hopkins, Jon Leah. (1995) A Yukon Pilot Project on Men’s Violence against Women. This report focuses on the lack of services and the barriers to accessing services for Aboriginal women in Whitehorse, Yukon, and nearby rural communities.

Jiwani, Yasmin. (2001) Erased Realities: The Violence of Racism in the Lives of Immigrant and Refugee Girls of Colour A juxtaposition of Canada’s obligations as defined by international human rights instruments, with the lived realities and impacts of policies in Canada on the lives of racialized immigrant and refugee girls.

Jiwani, Yasmin. (2001) Intersecting Inequalities: Immigrant Women of Colour, Violence & Health Care A report focusing on racialized immigrant women who have experienced intimate violence, and their access to, and encounters with, the health care system.

Jiwani, Yasmin. (2001) Mapping Violence: A Work in Progress. An examination of the dimensions and realities of violence in intimate and systemic contexts, with an emphasis on factors that contribute to the vulnerability to violence of specific groups of people.

Jiwani, Yasmin. (1998) Violence against Marginalized Girls: A Review of the Current Literature. An outline of commonalities that structure and impact the lives of marginalized girls.

Jiwani, Yasmin, with the assistance of Susan M. Brown. (1999) Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Girls and Young Women: A Review of Select Literature and Initiatives. Second Revised Edition. This literature review suggests there are many factors that facilitate the trafficking and sexual exploitation of young women, both internationally and within Canada itself.

Jiwani, Yasmin and Lawrence Buhagiar. (1997) Policing Violence against Women in Relationships: An Examination of Police Response to Violence against Women in British Columbia. Front-line workers’ experiences of police response are used to outline the inadequacies of existing policies on violence against women.

Ladha, Azmina N., editor. (2003) Re-Righting Reality: Young Women on their Search for Self. An anthology of experiences written by girls of all ages.

Moore, Shelley. (1998) Mapping Resistance on the Body: Intersections of Violence, Anorexia, and Bulimia in Girls. A review of the current literature on anorexia and bulimia in relation to the gender-specific experiences of girls during childhood. More: http://www.harbour.sfu.ca/freda/pubs/anthol.htm

Philippine Women Centre of BC. (1997) Trapped: Holding on to the Knife’s Edge – Economic Violence against Filipino Migrant/Immigrant Women. This report profiles the plight of Filipina domestic workers, and the factors that contribute to their vulnerability to violence and exploitation.

Purvey, Diane B. (1995) Not so Peaceable a Kingdom: A Preliminary Guide to Selected English-Canadian Theses on Violence. The historical changes in how violence has been framed, understood and researched are documented.

Purvey, Diane B. (1996) Violent Matters: An Annotated Guide to Selected Canadian English Language Magazines, 1945-1960. Magazine articles dealing with domestic violence are reported on and analyzed in this guide.

Sniderman, Barbara. (1996) Research in Action. (Video – $35) This video documents a gathering of community-based researchers and advocates from around the province, working on issues concerning violence against women. The participants discuss the barriers they have encountered in raising awareness and mobilizing their communities around violence issues.

Suleman, Zara and Holly McLarty. (1997) Falling Through the Gaps: Gaps in Services for Young Women Survivors of Sexual Assault. This study examines the experiences of young women survivors of sexual assault who face the failure of service agencies to provide meaningful assistance.

Wilmshurst, Susan. (1997) The Violence against Women in Relationships Policy: A Pre- and Post-Policy Examination of the Outcomes of Spousal Assault Reports in Penticton, British Columbia. A comparison of outcomes of spousal abuse reports one year before and one year after the implementation of British Columbia’s 1993 Violence Against Women in Relationships Policy.