Methodology
In 2020, Justice Canada, in collaboration with Women and Gender Equality Canada, contracted subject-matter experts to develop five evidence-based thought papersFootnote3 to support family law advisers in identifying and responding to family violence in diverse communities. Each thought paper focused on one of the following population groups: people with disabilities, Muslim communities, 2SLGBTQI+ individuals,Footnote4 racialized groups,Footnote5 and newcomers.Footnote6 Subject-matter experts developed the thought papers drawing from existing research as well as from their own experience as frontline service providers.
For each population group, the thought papers were intended to include the following information:
- The unique identifiers, warning signs and risk factors associated with family violence;
- The factors that might affect whether clients feel comfortable disclosing experiences of violence to a family law lawyer;
- The key considerations for approaching the topic of family violence and asking clients about their experiences;
- The topics, issues or ways of speaking about or describing concepts that should be avoided, along with the reasons why these matters should be avoided;
- The relevant legal and non-legal responses;
- The appropriate resources to address clients’ needs, including targeted available resources for the community and training for professionals; and
- The gaps in research on family violence for the community.Footnote7
The expertise and recommendations from these thought papers are integrated into Justice Canada’s HELP Toolkit,Footnote8 which provides guidance that assists family law legal advisers in to identifying and responding to family violence in their practice.
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