Comment to 'FLAST CASE SUMMARY: Bradbury & Lander 2019: Contravention Of Orders, Posting On Social Media'
  • "It doesn’t matter if it’s in a text message or email, FB etc. to one person or to 20 people, whether it’s a friend or family member, there is no such thing as a private conversation, anything you do or say may be used in court."

    That is true.... but as the judge himself said, "(70) While raising matters with third parties may harm the reputation of the parties, restraint also deprives the parties from being able to properly use support from third parties. If they cannot discuss what is going on with third parties it is difficult to envisage how they will obtain support. "

    And this is why the mother is appealing - battered women (and men) need to be able to identify as such to help their healing journey.  It's not about about the perpetrator, it doesn't have to involve identifying the perpetrator, just the freedom to say and identify as having survived domestic violence (which is all the mother sought to do).  And battered women need to be able to reach out in private to family and friends for support, and not have to worry about bitter "frenemies" (people pretending to be friends to spy for their ex) copying and pasting their private conversations, or in the case of the second contravention involving private conversation, third parties getting copies of private emails via deceitful means.

    The mother is appealing because mothers who are victims of DV are often terrorised by their violent exes through family court - because what better way to hurt a loving mother who has escaped the violence, than to take away her children and hurt them instead - your children being beaten and not being able to do anything about it, hurts far more than any beating you receive yourself.  Battered mothers have the human right to identify as DV victims publicly, as long as it doesn't name their abuser, and battered mothers have the human right to turn to their closest family and friends and share with them about the abuse in private for support (something even the judge partially acknowledge via his other judgment) as long as it's not done in front of the children.  Which is why this appeal needs to win.

    Any advice to pass on as to how to do that would be much appreciated.  unfortunately as a self represented person, with no legal background, up against someone who is admittedly an extremely excellent barrister who seems to have a photographic memory for every obscure law and case precedent in Australian law, is not an easy battle.  But it's one the mother wants to fight to protect other battered women's right to speak out publicly about being victimised (in ways that don't name the abuser) and to seek support in private from family and friends.

    FLAST

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