BC Institute Against Family Violence Projects
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 CIVIL LEGAL RIGHTS OF ABUSED WOMEN
A Transformative Public Legal Education Project

Introduction

West Coast LEAF has received a grant from the Law Foundation to carry out the Project: Civil Legal Rights of Abused Women: A Transformative Public Legal Education Project.

The project will be managed by the BC Institute Against Family Violence, in conjunction with the Vancouver Custody and Access Support Society. WCL has formed a project management committee consisting of: Heather Paton, chair, Public Legal Education Committee, WC LEAF; Alison Brewin, Executive Director, WC LEAF; Penny Bain, Executive Director, BCIFV; and Nancy Drewitt, Ajax Quinby (Munroe House), and Zara Sulemann (currently with Immigrant Services Society).

The project will also have an advisory committee consisting of volunteers from the Public Legal Education Committee, VCASSA and other representatives of women's advocacy organizations.

Purpose

Overall Objectives: The overall objective of the Project is to ensure that BC women who experience violence in intimate relationships have access to legal information and education to assist them to resolve civil legal issues related to custody and access.

Specific Objectives:

  1. to document the experience of abused BC women in resolving legal issues related to custody and access without legal representation, including to review the literature and recent research data
  2. to identify the key legal information and education needs of women's advocates to whom abused women turn when they are unable to obtain civil legal representation, including identifying key women's advocacy representatives and conducting structured interviews
  3. to prepare public legal education materials, including trainer materials and handouts, to address key legal information needs of women's advocates relating to abuse and custody and access
  4. to pilot test the public legal education materials with women's advocates in an urban and a rural community
  5. to revise the public legal education materials based on the pilot test
  6. to publish the materials on the Internet
  7. to promote the availability of the materials in five train the trainer workshops in various areas of the province.

The project will make the law more accessible to women who experience violence in intimate relationships by increasing their awareness of the law and justice system. The project will provide education to women's advocates who assist unrepresented abused women engaged in civil litigation. The project will also assist the provision of legal services by supporting women's advocacy organizations that benefit disadvantaged women, and by facilitating the access of abused women to the civil legal system.

Why is the Project Needed?

"Once a battered woman leaves her abusive husband, one effective way for him to maintain power and control may be through the children. Batterers can use the legal system to achieve this by court orders. Increasingly, battered women are losing custody of their children to their abusive former partner. Others are given joint custody, which enables the batterer to have ongoing contact and to continue the abuse."
From Is Anyone Listening? Report of the BC Task Force on Family Violence. Ministry of Women's Equality, BC, 1992, page 93

"The playing field is not level. Many working poor (the majority of which are women) don't qualify for legal aid. They are caught in the middle because they do not qualify for legal aid and they do not have enough money to pay for their own lawyer. This is seen often. It is almost impossible to get them through because of financial and other eligibility criteria."
" The woman originally had 'de-facto' custody of her daughter and her husband tried to get her so she went to get sole custody. There was violence against one of her children by him. She was refused a legal aid lawyer because she did not meet financial eligibility requirements."
"Women felt that since they are in a very emotional situation often when they go in to get help - they are unable to stand up for themselves or even recognize when their rights are being ignored."
Interviews with women denied legal aid and women's advocates who assist them conducted by Women's Access to Legal Services Coalition, summer 1999.

In BC in 1990 an abused woman had access to legal aid when she "would not otherwise receive [the services of a lawyer] because of financial or other reasons, and..[she] is or may be a party to a proceeding respecting a domestic dispute that affects the individual's physical or mental safety or health or that of the individual's children." [Legal Services Society Act, section 3(1)(a) and 3(2)(c)] By the end of the decade the elimination of flexible financial eligibility and the administrative restrictions on the types of family law cases covered have resulted in many women not receiving the services apparently mandated by the Act. As a result, women's advocates in organizations such as women's centres, transition houses, Native friendship centres, immigrant settlement agencies, and victim services have reported increasing pressure to assist abused women who must access civil legal remedies, particularly custody and access orders, without legal assistance.

In 1999 West Coast LEAF conducted a broad consultation and presented a National Forum on Equality Rights "Transforming Women's Future: Equality Rights in the New Century". Our Forum plenary "Violence, Abuse and Misuse of Power in Gendered Relationships" and the workshops "Civil Legal Aid in Canada and Gender Equality", "Legal Challenges in Family Law for Battered Women", "Providing Legal Services for Women Who Have Been Battered", and "Towards Transformative Public Legal Education for Women's Equality" identified violence and abuse against women as a key challenge for women's equality rights and transformative public legal education as an important strategy for promoting women's equality.

WCL's public legal education programs are developed in accordance with the following principles:

1. Transformative public legal education

In contrast to the popular model of education whereby information is shared by a knowledgeable party to less informed parties, transformative public legal education is a form of participatory action in which all participants actively take part in the program and learn from each other.

2. Ongoing collaboration with diverse equality-seeking community groups

West Coast LEAF develops educational initiatives in accordance with the principles set out in WCL's Diversity Policy (approved March 4, 1997). In particular, we consult with community groups and activists in order to determine the educational needs of diverse women in the community and the appropriate audience to be targeted. Where possible, we form coalitions with other equality-seeking groups in order to meet the educational needs of women in the community. We also organizes educational programs with women of diverse backgrounds as speakers and participants.

3. Distribution of public legal education materials

In planning an educational program, we determine the most effective method(s) of distributing educational materials to its targeted audience.

When distributing educational materials, we consider whether it is possible to update these materials in order to reflect legal developments.

4. Ongoing evaluation of educational initiatives

West Coast LEAF establishs goals for each educational initiative. We monitor and evaluate these educational initiatives.

5. Educational initiatives reflect WCL's annual program priorities

Each year, our Board establishes and prioritizes the issues that will be addressed by West Coast LEAF in establishing our programs. Our public education program reflects these priorities.

A public legal education plan has been developed as part of the workplan for any test case/law reform project that we are involved in. We also provide information and/or training to the public with respect to court decisions in which LEAF intervened, explaining the results and suggesting steps that could be taken to ensure the victories are translated into change.

LEAF's Public Legal Education Action Plan

    YEARS 1 - 5

    A. Program Selection Criteria

The public legal education activities of WCL for years 1 to 5 are directed at educating women about their equality rights relating to two or three substantive issues. The Board has adopted issue priorities based on community consultation and the results of the 1999 Forum, and further at the September 2000 Policy Retreat. Issue areas include violence against women, economic equality and the intersectionality of areas of discrimination.

    B. PLE Tools

West Coast LEAF uses the following tools in order to educate women about these substantive issues:

  1. This website: The purpose of this site is to proved information about women's equality rights, to tell potential supporters about LEAF and its activities, and to educate the public about how to access their equality rights. It also allows donations, applications for memberships and volunteers.

  2. LEAFlet: This newsletter informs members of legal developments, West Coast LEAF initiatives and events.

  3. Workshops and other educational programs: West Coast LEAF is developing and implementing a variety of pilot participatory action education programs over a five-year period. These programs are developed in consultation with community groups and activities.

  4. Public and Media Relations: West Coast LEAF uses the media to inform the public regarding law reform projects and cases in which LEAF intervened which have resulted in change to the law. We also use the media to increase our public profile and to explain the impct of LEAF's work on the day-to-day lives of women.

  5. Speaker Bureau: The primary goal of this program is to provide speakers to interested groups to speak about issues concerning equality rights for women in Canada and the role of West Coast LEAF on behalf of those rights.

West Coast LEAF Public Legal Education Mission Statement:

WCL ensures that public legal education is available to all residents of Canada, particularly those living in B.C, by providing:

  • equality rights education
  • equality rights information and referral
  • skills training to aid women to achieve equality using the legal system
  • information about the purpose and activities of the organization.

The ultimate goal of WCL's public legal education program is to enable women to learn about their equality rights and to empower them to access their legal rights and to think critically about the law. WCL's public legal education program recognizes that if women are informed about their equality rights, they will be able to take an active role in asserting their rights. Women will also be able to shape the laws that define them by mobilizing for change.

 

This page last updated October 25, 2000.
Copyright (c) 1996 BC Institute Against Family Violence.