Implemented
Who is leading the change
Court Services Victoria
The Magistrates’ Court of Victoria develop and implement a process of equipping court staff to actively manage the family violence list, having regard to risk assessment and management factors, and provide to magistrates the information the Commission recommends in this report.
The Magistrates’ Court of Victoria is working to make courts safer and less traumatic for victim-survivors by developing innovative approaches to improve the court experience. Courts aim to deliver family violence professional development for judicial officers and learning and development training for court staff covering family violence, family law and child protection. Work on this recommendation includes:
- examining the funding, resourcing and information technology requirements to implement this recommendation
- undertaking consultation with key stakeholders
- undertaking appropriate service design to incorporate the requirements of this recommendation
The Magistrates’ Court of Victoria has developed best practice guidance for family violence list management to meet the requirements of Recommendations 65 and 67.
The guidance outlines:
- the purpose of list management: to prioritise and triage matters when returning them to court and on the sitting day based on demand (volume of family violence matters) and risk (likelihood of family violence re-occurring and the severity and imminence of this)
- toles and responsibilities for list management: summarises the different responsibilities of court staff in relation to family violence list management and how these will be formally prescribed under the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework (MARAM)
- timeframes for returning matters to court
- capping of lists in conjunction with the Regional Coordinating Magistrate, based on the safety and wellbeing of parties
- preparation of the court file: outlines the process the registrar should follow to ensure all relevant information is compiled on the family violence intervention order court file, including a standardised checklist
- duties prior to and on the hearing day: outlines expectations for the registrar in relation to checking service of papers, arranging interpreters, arranging security and safety requirements, reviewing the court file, and conducting the Daily Coordination and Triage Meeting
- sharing family violence risk information: summarises expectations for court staff to be sharing information pertinent to family violence risk internally between staff within the court and externally between courts and other parts of the family violence system
Roll out of the new processes commenced in January 2019.
- Implemented.
Updated