Citation

Frederick L. Fam. Court Rev. 2008; 46(3): 523-530.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1744-1617.2008.00217.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Increasingly, family courts are seeking ways to focus limited resources on cases that require the most intervention, tailor court responses and dispute methods to each case, and account for the real differences among domestic violence cases. One of the means to that end may be the triaging or screening of cases. This article raises a number of questions about screening and urges that they be addressed by courts and communities that are considering whether and how to design a screening protocol. Issues include: How should we define domestic violence for the purposes of screening? Who should carry out the screening? How can we maximize the likelihood that we will fully assess the context of the violence in each case? How should we assess the risks or dangers inherent in the parties’ situation? How should a screening effort account for changing circumstances as a case proceeds through the courts? How can information gathered in a screening effort improperly impact subsequent decisions of the court?