Relationship difficulties and breakdowns are a sad reality of modern life. Problems can arise in any relationship – with your spouse or partner, your ex, adult children, a work colleague, even between flat mates.
In today’s high-pressure world, relationship difficulties or breakdowns can sometimes involve actual or threatened violence. At times of stress or when emotions are running high, some people “lose their cool” or use intimidation or violence to control the other person. Occasionally, one person thinks they may gain an advantage by untruthfully alleging violence by the other person.
If you find yourself in such a situation, can you get help? Maybe someone claims you have been violent towards them and has sought an intervention order against you. What do you need to do?
Family Violence Protection
Family violence occurs when someone acts in a way that causes a family member to be unsafe or to feel unsafe. The courts and police take family violence seriously. Family violence includes physical or sexual abuse, emotional or psychological abuse, economic abuse or financial control, and behaviour that is threatening, coercive, controlling or dominating, causing the affected person to fear for his or her safety or welfare.
Such behaviour can also include property damage, harming or threatening to harm a pet, and depriving a family member of their freedom. Family violence also includes exposing children to such behaviour.
The Family Violence Protection Act sets out a regime to protect someone who fears or has experienced family violence from a family member. A family member can include a partner or spouse, an ex-partner or ex-spouse, a relative, a child, or a person who is treated as a family member such as a carer or guardian.
Family Violence Safety Notice
In the first instance, the police could issue a Family Violence Safety Notice, so long as they believe the alleged perpetrator is at least 18 years old. The purpose of such a Notice is to provide the applicant or affected person with immediate protection from the alleged perpetrator. The Notice would require the alleged perpetrator to go to court where the court would decide whether to issue a Family Violence Intervention Order.
Family Violence Intervention Order
You or, if they agree, a police officer on your behalf can apply to the court for a Family Violence Intervention Order if you have experienced family violence and fear that it will happen again.
If granted, a Family Violence Intervention Order could prevent the perpetrator from:
- committing family violence
- damaging or using the victim’s personal property
- remaining in or entering the victim’s home, workplace or school
- approaching or communicating with the victim
- causing someone else to commit family violence against the victim
- holding a firearms’ licence.
When making a Family Violence Intervention Order, the court can also order that the perpetrator attend counselling to increase his or her sense of accountability for the family violence and to encourage him or her to change such behaviour.
What if I’m not related to the perpetrator?
The Personal Safety Intervention Order Act contains provisions similar to those in the Family Violence Protection Act for the personal protection of victims of assault, sexual assault, stalking, harassment, property damage and threats to kill or inflict serious injury, where the perpetrator and the victim are not members of one another’s family.
For the purposes of the Act, harassment includes conduct that is demeaning, derogatory or intimidating. Stalking includes the following conduct directed towards a victim with the intent to cause physical or mental harm (including self-harm) or fear for the safety of the victim or another person: following, loitering, keeping under surveillance, contacting, publishing material on the internet, tracing electronic communication, abusive or offensive words or acts, and giving the victim offensive material.
If the court finds that someone has engaged in conduct prohibited by this Act, it may grant a Personal Safety Intervention Order.
What happens if the intervention order is breached?
Having a Family Violence Intervention order or Personal Safety Intervention Order issued against you does not give a person a criminal record. However, if someone breaches a Family Violence Intervention Order or a Personal Safety Intervention Order, they could be arrested and prosecuted and may face imprisonment, a fine or both.
Can I defend an application against me for an intervention order?
Yes. You may want to challenge an application against you for a Family Violence or Personal Safety Intervention Order, if, for example, your version of what occurred differs from that of the alleged victim. It is also possible to appeal a court’s decision to grant such an Order.
Conclusion
Today, the courts and police take the issue of family violence and personal safety very seriously. The definition of family violence is broad, as is the range of prohibited conduct which could give rise to a Personal Safety Intervention Order. Breaches of such intervention orders are also treated seriously, and the court has the power to impose a range of significant penalties, including imprisonment.
This is general information only and you should seek professional advice relevant to your circumstances. If you are in immediate danger, please call 000 and ask for urgent assistance. If you or someone you know wants more information or needs help or advice, please call 0450 803 822 or email ma***@ma*************.au.
