Research by Luke's Place
We collaborate with academics, women and their advocates, and the legal sector to examine the intersection of family violence and family law.
Law reform
- Brief and Submission on Bill C-332 to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights: An Act to amend the Criminal Code (controlling or coercive conduct), February 2024
- Criminalizing Coercive Control: Unintended Consequences and Alternative Approaches, Joint Policy Brief for the Canadian Women's Foundation by Emily Murray, Luke's Place, and Roxana Parsa, LEAF, 2023
- Stopping Coercive Control by Criminalization: The Implications for Family Law, by Allana Haist, August 2021
- Presentation to the Standing Committee on Justice Policy on Bill 161: The Stronger and Smarter Justice Act, June 10, 2020
- Brief and Submission on Bill 207: An Act to amend the Children's Law Reform Act, the Courts of Justice Act, the Family Law Act and other Acts respecting various family law matters, October 2020
- Discussion Paper and Joint Brief on Bill C-78: An Act to amend the Divorce Act, October 2018
Women's experiences
- The Degendering of Male Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence against Female Partners in Ontario Family Law Courts, Mavis Morton, Tanja Samardzic, Pamela Cross, Shannon Johnstone, Leslie Vesely and Melisa Choubak, 2021
- Unpaid Child Support and the Impact on Women's and Children's Poverty, Amanda Smith, 2019
- How will the changes to child protection legislation affect the women I support?, Kevin Chao, 2019
- The Impact of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Recommendations on Violence Against Women, Amanda Smith, 2019
- Unable to Relinquish Control: Legal Abuse in Family Court, Kate Mazzuocco, 2017
- When Shared Parenting and the Safety of Women and Children Collide, Pamela Cross, 2016
- It Shouldn't Be This Hard: A gender-based analysis of family law, family court and violence against women, Pamela Cross, 2012
- The Impacts of Recent Law Reforms on Abused Women Involved in the Family Court Process in Ontario, Joan Riggs, 2011
- Through the Looking Glass: The Experiences of Unrepresented Abused Women in Family Court - a summary of our 2008 research by Pamela Cross
- Research report: A Needs Gap Assessment Report on Abused Women without Legal Representation in the Family Courts (Durham Region), Molly Dragiewicz and Walter DeKeseredy, 2008
- Final report: Needs Assessment and Gap Analysis for Abused Women Unrepresented in the Family Law System (Durham Region), Luke's Place, 2008
- Study on the Experiences of Abused Women in the Family Courts in Eight Regions in Ontario, Molly Dragiewicz and Walter DeKeseredy, 2008
- Étude sur les expériences des femmes
- In the Centre of the Storm: Durham Speaks Out - A community response to custody and access issues affecting woman abuse survivors and their children, 1997
Providing effective legal support & advice
- Going the Distance: Supporting Rural and Remote Survivors with Family Law Issues, Pamela Cross and Paula Wansbrough, 2022 (first published in 2016)
- Stopping coercive control by criminalization: The implications for family law, Allana Haist, 2021
- The Degendering of Male Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence against Female Partners in Ontario Family Law Courts, Mavis Morton, Tanja Samardzic, Pamela Cross, Shannon Johnstone, Leslie Vesely, and Melisa Choubak, 2021
- What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You: The importance of family violence screening tools for family law practitioners, Pamela Cross, Sara Crann, Kate Mazzuocco, Mavis Morton, 2018 - download from the Department of Justice, Canada
- The Special Needs of Survivors of Family Violence in the Family Court Process: Comments on Justice Annemarie E. Bonkalo’s Report “Family Legal Services Review”, by Luke's Place and the Barbra Schlifer Clinic, 2017
- The Impact of Third Parties on Solicitor-Client Privilege, Pamela Cross, 2015
- Towards a Centre of Excellence: A Think Tank Discussion about Violence Against Women and Family Law, Pamela Cross, 2015
- The Technological and Related Considerations of a Virtual Legal Clinic for Women who have Experienced Violence, Paula Wansbrough, 2015