Beyond the Referral: Bridging Family Law and Family Violence Services

“Refer the client to an appropriate family violence service.”

It’s familiar advice. But what happens after that referral?

For family lawyers, there can be a significant gap between identifying that a client needs support and understanding what family violence services actually provide, how clients access them, and what different forms of support may be available.

On the other side of that referral, professionals working directly with victim-survivors may recognise that a client needs legal assistance without necessarily knowing what legal pathways may be available, how different legal processes interact, or where a client can obtain appropriate legal support.

Beyond the Referral brings those two perspectives together.

Hosted by Family Law Barrister Ashleigh Morris and Family Violence Social Worker Lauren Kreitner, drawing on Ashleigh's legal perspectives and Lauren’s experience working directly with victim-survivors of family violence, this practical CPD explores the same client journey through two different professional lenses: the legal system and the family violence service system.

Rather than examining either system in isolation, the session focuses on the points at which they intersect — and where clients can fall into the gaps between them.

What we'll explore

What exists beyond “refer to a family violence service”
What different types of services can offer, the forms of practical and specialist assistance that may be available to victim-survivors, and what lawyers should understand when discussing support options with clients.

When a support issue becomes a legal issue
The circumstances that may indicate a client needs legal advice or intervention, the types of legal pathways that may be available, and how service providers can help clients recognise when legal assistance should be sought.

The same client, seen through two professional lenses
How lawyers and family violence practitioners may approach the same circumstances differently — including questions of risk, safety, evidence, immediate needs and longer-term outcomes.

Where the systems intersect
How family law proceedings, family violence protection systems and support services can interact, including the practical implications when a client is navigating more than one system at the same time.

Making referrals that actually help
Moving beyond generic referrals to better understand what information clients may need, the different categories of assistance available, and how lawyers and support professionals can work more effectively alongside one another.

Communication and professional boundaries
Understanding the respective roles of lawyers and support professionals, what each profession can contribute, and where the limits of those roles lie.

Why attend?

Family violence rarely presents as a purely legal problem or a purely support problem.

A client may simultaneously be navigating safety concerns, parenting arrangements, financial insecurity, housing, court proceedings, trauma and the practical realities of separating from a former partner.

No single professional is responsible for addressing all of those issues. But understanding what happens outside your own professional lane can make it much easier to identify what a client needs next.

For lawyers, this session provides a practical window into the family violence service system and what may actually happen after a client is referred for support.

For professionals working with victim-survivors, it provides greater insight into the legal landscape, when legal advice may be needed, and the role legal practitioners can play.

The aim is simple: to make each side of the referral less opaque, and help professionals provide a more connected response to clients experiencing family violence.

This session takes a national, principles-based approach. Specific family violence legislation, court processes, services and referral pathways vary between Australian states and territories.