California Certified Family Law Specialists are, as are all specialists, mandated to keep current regarding their area of law.  No other field of law experiences greater or more frequent change than that of divorce, with changes coming on an almost daily basis. 

Unfortunately one of the aspects of Family Law that remains unchanged is that of domestic violence, and while no one we know wants to “specialize” in this aspect, still it’s good to have some clear hard facts under our belts as we proceed in the family law arena.

About 1.5 million women and more than 800,000 men, every year in the U.S. are raped or otherwise physically assaulted by an intimate partner.

In 2002, a national study found that 29% of women and 22% of men had experienced some form of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV – physical, sexual or psychological) during their lifetime.

One 2001 study found that children of abused mothers were 57 times more likely to have been harmed because of violence between their parents, compared with children of non-abused mothers.The consequences of IPV can lead to various symptoms, including depression, suicidal behaviors, anxiety, and low self-esteem. The effects can extend sociologically creating strained relationships with health care providers and employers, and/or isolation from otherwise usual social networks. And, there are economic consequences as well.

A 2003 study found that victims of sever IPV lose nearly 8 million days of paid work – the equivalent of more than 32,000 fulltime jobs – and almost 5.6 million days of household productivity each year.