The first half of this Institute will cover recent California family and juvenile law cases dealing with domestic violence. Panelists will discuss coercive control and other psychological aspects of domestic violence, to help professionals better serve families in crisis.

In late 2017 and early 2018, California appellate courts issued landmark opinions regarding California’s jurisdiction to hear restraining orders against out-of-state defendants, a family court’s ability to renew domestic violence restraining orders issued by juvenile courts, the right to seek immigration-based support orders in family courts, and the use of a child’s extracurricular activities to harass, intimidate, manipulate, and/or control the other parent.

Other key recent cases address child custody and visitation, restraining orders, international child abduction, immunity from civil suits, allegations of failure to protect children from exposure to abuse, and the right to free court reporters.

The second half of this Institute will address, among other topics, the high correlation between domestic violence tendencies and mass homicide. One 2008 study (Glass, et al) found that a woman was 750% more likely to become the victim of a homicide after a non-fatal strangulation event by an intimate partner. While professionals in this field are acutely aware of the many risks associated with practicing in the area of family law, how many understand that those who pose a threat may not be the ones making threats? If so, how do you identify these individuals who may pose the greatest threats and deter violent behaviors? This panel will discuss past and current cases as it examines the current state of violence, murder/suicides, mass shootings, homicides and who is perpetrating these crimes.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will:

  • Be able to describe significant recent changes in California domestic violence law, including California appellate decisions and newly-revised statutes.
  • Be able to describe the concept of coercive control, as well as other psychological aspects of domestic violence.
  • Understanding the threat dynamic and identifying the relationship between strangulation and targeted violence.
  • Identifying pre-attack behaviors and warning behaviors, as well as strategies for mitigating violence both in and out of the courtroom.
  • Understand how to apply this expanded knowledge regarding domestic violence in one’s family law practice area.