Family Violence

Why do women stay in abusive relationships? Battered woman syndrome

What is BWS? Battered woman syndrome (‘BWS’) is a well-known psychological condition that was first introduced in the 1970s to describe the altered mental state of victims of family violence. BWS ordinarily develops in women who have been victims of long-term...

Is there dowry abuse in Australia? A Family law problem

In 2012, a 21 year old Chinese woman was beaten to death by her mother-in-law who wanted her son to divorce the woman and marry another woman for a $500,000 dowry. In 2014, an Indian man murdered his wife in front of their young son and later took his own life,...

Violence against children: Crime or Punishment?

The use of corporal punishment in response to problem behaviour in children is an age-old practice that is still often resorted to by modern parents. Its pervasiveness is reflected in our legal system- in every jurisdiction in Australia, there is a defence to conduct...

Have you heard of what revenge porn is?

Victoria and South Australia have enacted criminal penalties in relation to perpetrators of revenge porn. Revenge porn is the distribution of sexually explicit images, videos and other materials without consent which is designed to inflict embarrassment and / or worse...