The Chief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA), Justice Alstergren has signalled that a national database of family violence orders may be forthcoming.
There is presently no centralised system to monitor these orders, as well as criminal charges and other court orders across different jurisdictions. This can lead to gaps in information.
The proposed database aims to address this issue by allowing courts to access information about intervention and protection orders from other states and territories, with the aim of enabling the FCFCOA to more efficiently respond to potential risks posed by individuals.
Recent research undertaken by the FCFCOA found that 60 percent of women whose cases appeared before the Court should be deemed high-risk. Previously, it was thought that 38 percent of cases are high-risk.
In his address to the ABC Radio forum on 1 May regarding the epidemic of violence against women, Chief Justice Alstergren stated that the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department is overseeing the development of a system between different courts and jurisdictions to ensure effective and timely information-sharing across jurisdictions.
Chief Justice Alstergren's comments follow a reported 30 percent spike in the rate of women killed by an intimate partner this year, when compared to 2023.
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