Are children protected in family courts when child sexual abuse is raised in custody disputes?
Fact: No. Children who disclose sexual abuse by a parent in the context of a custody dispute are frequently not protected from further abuse. Research shows that: • Only 10% of children alleging incest are adequately protected from their identified perpetrators by family courts through long-term supervised visitation orders or no-contact orders. • The remaining 90% of children disclosing abuse receive no protection, with 70% continuing in shared custody and visitation arrangements without any supervision, and 20% being placed in the custody of the parent they accused of the sexual abuse, and losing unsupervised or all contact with the parent who sought to protect them.57 27. Do cases involving abuse allegations take up more court time and resources than other family court cases? Fact: Yes. Cases involving allegations of abuse take up a large amount of court time and resources. • “[C]hild abuse cases ha[ve] become what the management experts term ‘the core business of the courts’. In ot
