Law Reform

NQWLS regularly advocates for change and makes or contributes to submissions on issues that impact women

In the past year this work has included:

• Participating in the Women’s Legal Services Australia (WLSA) network and actively contributing to their submissions:

  • Launch of WLSA’s Safety First in Family Law campaign;

  • Submissions on the proposed Family Law Courts merger;

  • COVID-19 related advocacy to ensure that women experiencing domestic violence were exempt from penalties if they had to flee their residence during lockdowns and clarifying the relevant exemptions relating to parenting arrangements and/or orders.

  • Submissions in relation to the Federal Domestic Violence Inquiry; and

  • Feedback given in relation to the Family Law Courts’ emergency COVID-list.
    

• Participating in the Queensland Law Society’s Domestic Violence Policy Committee and actively contributing to their submissions on subjects such as:

  • Concerns regarding domestic violence services and practices in Queensland courts;

  • Options for improving the family violence competency of legal practitioners;

  • The Joint Select Committee’s inquiry into the Family Law system;

  • Review of Queensland’s consent laws and mistake of fact;

  • Brisbane City Council’s Domestic & Family Violence strategy;

  • The Family and Federal Circuit Court merger bill;

  • Temporary migration and family violence;

  • The inquiry into family, domestic and sexual violence; and

  • The review of the Domestic and Family Violence Best Practice Guidelines.

You can access some of our more recent media releases that highlight the work we’ve been involved with here.