Mediating in Cases in Domestic Violence – Between a Rock and a Hard Place
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In a one day survey of Domestic Violence Services provided in Ireland on this day last year (6 November 2012), the following statistics were recorded: 537 women and 311 children were accommodated and/or received support from a domestic violence service; 115 helpline calls were received from women; 117 women and 152 children were living in a refuge; 21 women could not be accommodated due to lack of space. (www.womensaid.ie). Separation and divorce can be the result of domestic violence, but also a trigger for it.
The question of whether, and how, to mediate with couples who have experienced or are experiencing domestic violence or abuse has challenged and divided mediation professionals for many years now without consensus on how to handle such cases having been reached. Domestic abuse can be a contra-indicator for mediation for a number of reasons, mainly however that it is likely to compromise the equality of bargaining power, the free interaction with and the voluntary participation in mediation. On one end of the debate, scholars and practitioners argue that all cases involving domestic abuse should be ruled out of mediation. On the other end it is argued that the power imbalances caused by such abuse can be counterbalanced or eliminated by means of a combination of specific mediator skills and structural safeguards.
Read original articleTags: Domestic abuse, domestic violence
