Domestic Abuse

An initiative designed to make victims of domestic violence feel safer in their own homes could be rolled out in Northern Ireland. Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey told a conference hosted by Belfast and Lisburn Women's Aid that she is considering plans to introduce the Sanctuary Scheme model fir

A victim of domestic violence who did not realise she would be named in a court report in her local newspaper has had her complaint dismissed by the Press Ombudsman. The woman gave evidence in court in the trial of a former partner who had admitted assaulting her, and her name and address was subseq

The criminal justice system in Ireland is failing victims of domestic abuse, with only a minority of women feeling safer or that justice has been done after engaging with it. A major new report released by Women's Aid yesterday outlines what the frontline organisation says are significant failings b

A bill introducing a new offence of coercive control in Northern Ireland which automatically fell after the prorogation of Parliament will now continue to be considered by MPs. The UK Government's Domestic Abuse Bill was one of a number of pieces of proposed legislation which automatically fell foll

There remains an opportunity for Northern Ireland to take forward long-awaited domestic abuse reforms after a Westminster setback by working to restore devolution, former justice minister Claire Sugden has told Irish Legal News. The UK Government announced earlier this summer that its Domestic Abuse

Northern Ireland lawyers Claire Edgar and Gráinne Murphy are in Norway this week for a major conference on domestic violence. The European Conference on Domestic Violence, which was previously held in Belfast in 2016, is meeting this week in Oslo.

A new report on domestic abuse in the Irish criminal justice system is set to be launched by Women's Aid Ireland next month. The Unheard and Uncounted: Women, Domestic Abuse and the Irish Criminal Justice System report will be launched on Thursday 26 September following a seminar at the charity's Du

Proposals to prevent domestic abusers from cross-examining their victims in the family courts have been put out to consultation by the Department of Justice. The consultation paper, published yesterday, sets out options for legislation including applying a statutory prohibition on cross-examination

Westminster will legislate to introduce a new offence of coercive control in Northern Ireland, former Justice Minister Claire Sugden has announced. In a statement this morning, Ms Sugden said she had been informed by Northern Ireland's Department of Justice that the UK Government's Domestic Abuse Bi

Further action must be taken to improve how cases of domestic violence and abuse are handled in Northern Ireland's criminal justice system, according to a key watchdog. In a new report, Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJI) warns that important reforms have been delayed as a result of t

The Department of Justice and Probation Board NI (PBNI) will complete an assessment of a domestic violence pilot at Londonderry Magistrates' Court by September under the updated domestic and sexual violence and abuse strategy. Since last March, judges in Derry have been allowed to refer those convic

Draft domestic abuse legislation fails to protect women in Northern Ireland, MPs have warned. The legislation introduces a statutory definition of domestic abuse to encompass economic abuse as well as controlling and manipulative behaviour.

Over 300 applications have been made to the Domestic Violence and Abuse Disclosure Scheme (DVADS) in Northern Ireland since its introduction one year ago. New figures from the PSNI, which operates the scheme, reveal that 326 checks have been made and 40 people, identified as being at risk, have been

New court rules required under the Domestic Violence Act 2018 have come into effect. The District Court Rules have been amended to facilitate the operation of the significant Act, which was commenced at the start of the year.

New inheritance law reforms to prevent people who kill their partners from profiting will be brought to the Oireachtas within weeks. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan confirmed that new legislation will be introduced in the Dáil to address concerns raised in respect of the deaths of Celine Ca