It's clear to me, after all these years of observing family court and now actually looking at the outcomes of these cases, that courts need guidance on how to interpret this issue. A gender-neutral notion of violence is why we are where we are, not making better progress. The courts need assistance to understand the nuanced nature of the kind of abuse that's happening.
I don't know what people imagine that men who perpetrate violence look like, or what women who survive violence look like, but I think they need assistance to understand that it's people from all walks of life. Some of the scariest men I've ever dealt with present really well in family court. Courts need assistance to understand.
The system is already inaccessible. We cannot ask all litigants to come with experts to educate the court over and over again about this issue. We need courts to be equipped to understand that they have to take into account women's rights to life, liberty, and security of the person, and equality.