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About Luke’s Place:   Luke’s Place Support & Resource Centre for Women & Children is an award-winning non-profit centre of excellence in family law support for women who have been subjected to intimate partner abuse. We are devoted to improving the safety and experience of women and their children as they proceed through the complex family…

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Sexual Violence Prevention Month  

May is recognized as Sexual Violence Prevention Month in Ontario and across Canada. This is an important time to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual violence and to strengthen efforts to support survivors and prevent harm. Sexual violence is deeply gendered. Women, girls, and gender-diverse people are far more likely to experience sexual violence…

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Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence and the Ontario Family Law System

Understanding how survivors experience the family law system is essential to improving access to safety and justice.  Over the past three years, Luke’s Place has partnered with Dr. Mavis Morton from the University of Guelph to conduct a province-wide research project exploring the family law experiences of women and gender-diverse survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) with…

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Strengthening Legal Responses to Intimate Partner Violence: New Emergency Motions Module Added to Effective Lawyering Course 

Lawyers representing survivors of intimate partner violence often face situations where time is critical. When safety is at risk, waiting weeks or months for a regular court date is simply not an option.  That’s why Luke’s Place has added a new module on emergency motions to our Effective lawyering with clients leaving abusive relationships course.  Emergency motions are one of…

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International Transgender Day of Visibility

Women face many barriers, challenges, and forms of violence in relationships with abusive partners, during and after leaving, and while navigating family court. Trans women experience higher rates of violence than cisgender women, with Black and Indigenous transgender women facing some of the highest levels of harm. The following statistics come from national survey research…

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It’s Time to Turn the Tide Together: 3rd Anniversary of Mass Casualty Commission Report

On March 30, 2023, the Nova Scotia Mass Casualty Commission released its landmark final report, Turning the Tide Together, offering a wide-ranging and deeply grounded blueprint for how Canada could better prevent and respond to violence in all its forms, especially gender-based, intimate partner, and family violence. The Commission’s report laid out what so many…

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Limited Scope Legal Services WAGE Promising Practices

Access to justice remains one of the most significant challenges facing women leaving abusive partners. Survivors navigating the family court system without legal representation often face overwhelming barriers, from safety risks to complex procedures that are difficult to manage alone.  Recognizing these challenges, organizations across Canada have been exploring new approaches to legal support that are more responsive to…

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