‘Threatening to infect the children’: Family courts to fast-track urgent, virus-related applications

Families battling with parenting disputes and escalating violence relating to the COVID-19 crisis will have their matters prioritised by some of the nation’s top judges.

Cathy Gale has been practicing family law for years, but never before has she seen a surge in cases like this

“I’m seeing examples on a daily basis where COVID-19 is being used as a weapon of family violence to control the other party, most often when children are involved,” the Director of Resolve Conflict Family Lawyers told SBS News.

“We have seen examples in our practice of men threatening to expose themselves to the virus and spread it to the family or threatening to expose their children to the virus if they don’t get their way or the parent doesn’t do whatever they’re saying they should do,” she said.