Civil Protective Orders in Integrated Domestic Violence Court: An Empirical Study

Erika J Rickard

doi:10.2139/ssrn.1782212

Abstract

New York's Integrated Domestic Violence (IDV) Court was created to streamline the judicial process and promote efficiency and victim safety in cases of domestic violence.One would expect this collaboration and concerted effort on improving the justice system for victims of domestic violence would yield faster results than under the traditional system. The data presented here indicate just the opposite: IDV Courts take longer to address motions for civil protective orders, and are not significantly more likely to grant such orders than traditional matrimonial courts.

Highlights

The introduction of the Violence Against Women Act (“VAWA”) in 19941 led to higher arrest levels and availability of protective orders,[2] causing a significant increase in the number of domestic violence cases coming through the courts
Where previous studies have focused on components of criminal domestic violence cases[27] such as sentencing, recidivism, and probation, the research reported here is limited to civil protective orders in divorce cases.[28]
Internal rules of Integrated Domestic Violence (IDV) Court provide that IDV court judges have authority to hear matters in these respective areas, and that the IDV Court will follow their respective rules of court

Summary

Introduction

The introduction of the Violence Against Women Act (“VAWA”) in 19941 led to higher arrest levels and availability of protective orders,[2] causing a significant increase in the number of domestic violence cases coming through the courts. In the decades that followed, courts sought to accommodate this caseload through various alternatives to the traditional adversarial procedure.[3] Across the country, a plethora of domestic violence focus groups, pilot projects, and institutionalized courts have been implemented.[4]. One approach was the development of specialized courts tailored to situations of domestic violence. Domestic violence courts are considered “problem-solving courts,” addressing both the legal and non-legal concerns of the parties involved.[5] These courts hear only domestic violence

Methods

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion