CLIENT AND COUNSELLOR PERCEPTIONS OF THE PROCESS AND OUTCOMES OF FAMILY COURT COUNSELLING IN CASES INVOLVING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

The Family Court of Australia provides conciliation counselling to couples who are involved in disputes regarding their children following separation. In cases where domestic violence is involved, the appropriateness of providing counselling has been seriously questioned. This study is an extension of earlier work completed by the authors that specifically examined client satisfaction with counselling in cases involving domestic violence. This article examines client and counsellor perceptions of the counselling process and its outcomes.     

The Role of Class Action Litigation in Achieving Child Welfare Reform: A Study in Public Conflict Resolution

This article traces the history of a 16-year court battle over the child welfare system in Kansas City, Missouri, which eventually headed toward resolution as the result of an innovative public policy negotiation process. The process combined the substantive expertise of nationally and locally respected child welfare professionals with political muscle at the state, local, and community levels to develop and implement a plan for reform. If the results of this process become institutionalized in the Kansas City child welfare system, it will represent a significant transformation in the governing culture and practices of the system and the community it serves.