Collecting and Presenting Evidence in Family Court: A Guide for Survivors 

When you’re preparing for family court, especially in cases involving intimate partner violence, how you gather and present your evidence can have a significant impact on your case. Since family court is an adversarial process, it is important to help the judge understand in a clear, credible, and compelling way. 

Where to begin: 

A helpful way to begin gathering evidence is to reflect on key moments in your relationship when abuse may have started or escalated. These might include: 

• When you were dating 

• When you first started to live together and/or got married 

• When you were pregnant for the first time 

• When your children were very young 

• When you and/or your partner had to deal with life crises (employment, 
  financial issues, illness, death) 

• After you separated 

Use these key points as a timeline to help you remember and organize specific incidents, as well as our Gathering Evidence Checklist as a guide. 

How to present your information: 

Before any legal meeting whether it’s with a lawyer, mediator, duty counsel, or a Family Law Information Centre (FLIC) advisor, it’s best to organize your thoughts and evidence in writing. Point form is absolutely fine. What matters most is clarity and detail. 

Focus on helping the person you’re speaking with understand: 

• The pattern of abuse: What typically triggered it? How often did it happen? 

• The duration and whether it’s escalated over time 

• Any physical injuries you’ve sustained 

• What your children witnessed or were exposed to 

• The emotional, psychological, or financial impact of the abuse on you and your children 

• Any abuse that occurred post-separation 

• Your current safety concerns, grounded in past experience 

Organizing your evidence effectively 

Here are some simple but powerful tips to help you organize your story in a way that makes a strong impression: 

• Use point form for clarity 

• Be direct and specific, avoid vague statements 

• Number your paragraphs to make it easier for others to refer to them 

• Stick to the legal issues at hand (custody, access, safety, etc.) 

• Stay factual. Don’t exaggerate or embellish, but don’t minimize your experiences either 

• Start with the most recent incident, then move back through your relationship chronologically 

• Don’t stress about exact dates, just describe what happened and when as best you can 

• Highlight how the abuse affected you and your children, emotionally, physically, or otherwise 

Why This Matters 

Presenting your story in this way helps the legal professionals supporting you understand what’s happening right now and gives them a clear picture of the history that led up to this point.  

When judges and lawyers can see the pattern and impact of the abuse, they’re in a much better position to advocate for your safety and your children’s well-being. 

For more information: 

For additional tools and worksheets to help you prepare for court, visit our Family Court and Beyond resource. It’s designed to support women during family law proceedings with practical guidance and compassionate advice.