NCJ Number
147920
Date Published
1994
Length
7 pages
Annotation
The importance of professional education for lawyers to make them more aware of family violence issues is stressed, particularly with respect to battered women.
Abstract
Family violence has traditionally been understood to mean interrelated forms of violence within the family, including violence against intimate partners, child abuse, and child sexual abuse. As the understanding of family has expanded, other forms of violence have received attention, such as elder abuse, peer and sibling physical and sexual abuse, and lesbian and gay male battering. Family violence issues arise in family, civil, criminal, probate, and Federal courts. Yet, most law students graduate from law school with little or no exposure to the problem. Law schools have not integrated family violence issues into their curricula due to a lack of social understanding of the seriousness of family violence. Consequently, lawyers must receive professional education to enable them to deal with family violence issues in different practice settings. Over the past 10 years, special courses on battered women have emerged in law schools and are also being offered by various bar associations and women's and civil rights groups. In developing professional education on family violence, the link between classroom and clinical education is particularly important. Further, professional education must be interdisciplinary, and public policy programs and institutes on family violence must be developed to build on interdisciplinary work. 8 references