Domestic and Family Violence Service

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 000 and ask for the police.

The Domestic and Family Violence Service (DFV Service) was launched in 2022 and is a vital part of Illawarra Legal Centre’s (ILC’s) work to support women who are victims of family violence and help them navigate the legal system. Our team of solicitors and caseworkers provide a holistic service that is person-centred and trauma-informed within the Illawarra and Shoalhaven regions.

What do we do?

The service assists women experiencing or fleeing family and domestic violence who have complex needs and multiple legal issues. Our goal is to deliver critical and time-sensitive legal supports to women. The legal and caseworker services provided include:

Legal advice in civil and family law matters relating to family and domestic violence including apprehended domestic violence orders, victims’ support, credit and debt issues and some other family law matters
Assistance with drafting documents and Legal Aid applications
Practical and emotional support
Internal referrals to other ILC supports such as; welfare rights, financial counselling and tenancy support.
Supported referrals to a wide range of external specialist and mainstream services (eg. trauma counselling and emergency accommodation).
Community Legal Education – educating and empowering women to move forward in their lives while feeling protected, confident in seeking services and supported by the law.

What is Domestic and Family Violence?

Domestic and family violence includes any behaviour, in an intimate or family relationship, which is violent, threatening, coercive or controlling, causing a person to live in fear and to be made to do things against their will. This may involve having to significantly modify their behaviour in an attempt to mitigate threats to their safety and wellbeing or the safety and wellbeing of people they care about. Domestic and family violence can happen to anyone and can take many forms eg. Coercive Control is a pattern of manipulation and intimidation that causes a victim to be scared and experience fear and isolation.

Domestic and family violence includes:

Physical abuse including hitting, punching, slapping, pulling hair, biting
Intimidation, making someone feel small
Emotional or psychological abuse including verbal abuse (humiliation, degradation and dehumanisation)
Threats to harm and/or causing harm to others and pets
Threats to damage property or actually damaging property
Coercive/ Controlling behaviour (e.g. stopping someone from seeing family and friends)
Harassment, including by phone, text message, letters, on Facebook and other social media
Stalking – following, watching or waiting for someone
Financial abuse (e.g. taking money, withholding money, stopping someone from working)
Sexual assault and other abusive or coercive behaviour of a sexualised nature.

Domestic and family violence does not just happen between husbands and wives. It can happen in lots of close relationships, like:

Defacto relationships (people who live together like husband and wife but are not married)
Same sex relationships
Relatives – including mothers, fathers, siblings, aunties, uncles, grandparents, cousins, children, step-children and step-parents, in-laws, kinship networks and community relationships.
People who are or have been dating, even if casually and even if the relationship is not sexual
Ex-partners

How can we help?

If you and/or your children are experiencing domestic and family violence you may want help to learn your legal rights which may support you to escape your current situation.

DFV Service is a free and confidential legal service for all women in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven regions. Based in our Warrawong office we can also see women at a number of outreach locations. Call 4276 1939 to make an appointment and find the outreach location nearest to you.

We can also assist with referrals to support agencies to make sure you are safe.

Other ways ILC can help

DV and Welfare Rights

The Welfare Rights Service is committed to supporting people who are affected by family and domestic violence by providing information, advice and help in relation to Centrelink problems. If you, or someone you know, is experiencing family and domestic violence, you may have questions regarding your rights to income support from Centrelink.

The Centrelink payment, and payment rate, may be different if you are no longer a member of a couple. You may also be entitled to additional payments, for example a crisis payment. A crisis payment is a one off payment you may be eligible for if you have left your home because of family and domestic violence and have set up a new home, or plan to set up a new home. A crisis payment can also be paid if you remain in your own home after family and domestic violence and the person responsible has left. A claim for crisis payment must be lodged within 7 days of the event.

We can also assist you lodge an appeal against a Centrelink decision to raise a debt, particularly in circumstances where the debt arose from the inaccurate reporting of your former partner’s income. The law allows for debts to be waived where special circumstances exist within a case.

Our solicitors can provide free and confidential advice about crisis payments, payment types and rates, and appeals against Centrelink decisions. We can also advise you about exemptions from the activity test and exemptions from taking child support action. We understand that it is important to get expert and timely advice in family and domestic violence situations.

DV and Tenancy Rights

If you are experiencing family and domestic violence in the home where you rent you will most likely be asking yourself the question of whether to stay or leave.

Tenancy law in NSW has special provisions to make that choice easier, however everyone’s situation is different and so it’s important that you understand all of your options before making that difficult decision.

Staff at the Tenants Service take matters involving family and domestic violence very seriously and will take the time needed to understand the situation before giving you the advice you need.

Please call the Tenants Service on 4274 3475.