The Queensland police officer who leaked the personal details of a domestic violence victim has declined to answer questions about his actions at a tribunal hearing, invoking his privilege against self-incrimination. The tribunal accepts as fact that senior constable Neil Punchard accessed the personal details of a woman, known as Julie, and sent them to her violent former husband. Julie is seeking compensation for breach of privacy in the Queensland civil and administrative tribunal (QCAT).…

Does living together before marriage increase your risk of divorce? This association had been clear in study after study up to around 2007, and then a number of studies and social scientists declared that the association between living together before marriage and difficulties in marriage had disappeared. So which is it? Most experts say that the correlation between the two became better understood in recent years. For example, an important part of the story had…

Homicidal violence within families is a “poorly understood” aspect of domestic violence and is under-reported in Queensland, according to a new report. The Domestic and Family Violence Death Review and Advisory Board’s annual report, tabled in Queensland Parliament late last week, closely examined 20 cases of domestic and family violence deaths involving 30 victims. Since July 2006, nearly 300 people have been murdered in domestic and family violence circumstances, of which 80 per cent…

Being separated under one roof may be the latest divorce trend, in which couples agree to separate but continue living together in the main residence. Most of the time, this choice is made because maintaining two houses is expensive, and because the couple wants to co-parent the children with minimal disruption. Common reasons to choose separation under one roof include: Young children still living at home. None of the spouses want to move into apartments…