The Family Law and CALD Communities Project

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• The Family Law and CALD Communities Project
• Community legal education in partnership with new
  and emerging migrant communities

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Project Objectives

• Primary objectives
• Within a framework which respects cultural
  diversity and encourages dialogue about
  difference the project develops community legal
  education programs to
• promote understanding of the Australian family
  law system among CALD communities
• promote the ability of individuals to make
  informed choices
• promote understanding of how to access and comply
  with the Australian legal system among CALD
  communities

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Project Objectives

• Secondary intended outcome
• That the information shared by CALD communities
  regarding their own cultural, religious and legal
  backgrounds, their perceptions of the Australian
  legal system and concerns about accessing the
  Australian legal system be made available to
  legal practitioners, educators and policy
  officers to inform their work and enhance their
  capacity to work with CALD communities.

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Why a dedicated project?

• Divorce, property settlement, childrens living
  arrangements, family violence, child protection
  are all of community issues just as relevant to
  Australian community as a whole as they are to
  CALD communities.
• Language barriers can be addressed through
  interpreters.
• Well established ETU (3.5 FTE staff) responsible
  for training, publications, updating the Law
  Handbook Online.
• SO WHY A SPECIALIST PROJECT?

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Why a dedicated project?

• Laws of countries of origin are often vastly
  different to Australias laws
• Learning Australian law is but one issue that
  recent migrants refugees grapple with
  (settlement issues of housing, education,
  employment, language, dislocation, ongoing trauma
  etc.)
• Ongoing networking and consultation with
  communities are vital yet time intensive

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Why a dedicated project (cont)

• Laws around marriage, divorce, children,
  property settlement, dowries/bride prices, family
  violence, child protection are often vastly
  different in other societies. Considering that
  new migrants confront multiple challenges
  (housing, education, language, employment,
  trauma, dislocation, separation from family,
  racism), understanding Australias laws is but
  one of many issues facing refugees, humanitarian
  entrants and other new migrants from new and
  emerging communities. CLE for new migrant
  communities is not about adding information about
  laws into a blank space. It is generally about
  untangling. New and emerging migrant community
  members are often surprised that laws they lived
  with/under do not only not apply in Australia,
  and that Australian laws will sometimes be
  completely opposite to the laws of their
  countries of origin or refuge.

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Project Overview

• Stage One Pilot Program
• Project defined
• High level sponsorship (Board of Commissioners,
  Director, Law Foundation)
• Strategic partnership-Migrant Resource Centre
  Multicultural Communities Council
• Funding for 0.5 FTE Worker (Law Foundation of SA)
• Needs analysis
• Research
• Reference Group
• Community Consultation
• Education programs
• Building relationships
• Education methodology
• Content (depends on individual community)

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Reference group

• Made up of representatives from key stakeholders
  Multicultural Communities Council, Migrant
  Resource Centre, Multicultural Sa, Migrant
  Womens Support and Accommodation Service,
  Survivors of Torture and Trauma Assistance and
  Rehabilitation Service, Family Court (SA
  Registry), SA Child Services (Families SA)
• Reference Group supported project worker to
• identify CALD communities with greatest need for
  family law information (metro based African,
  Asian and Middle Eastern communities)
• foster communication relationships with
  priority communities
• conduct consultations with priority communities

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Community consultations

• Consultations with 3 broad community groups (as
  identified by Reference Group - African, Asian
  and Middle Eastern communities)
• Two critical outcomes
• Projects understanding of community needs
  improved
• Project gained trust credibility

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Community consultationslogistics

• Hosted at Migrant Resource Centre
• Community leaders and ethno-specific community
  workers participated in the consultation (project
  revised communication methods)
• Case studies to identify attitudes knowledge
  around family dynamics in Australia, marriage
  traditions, childrens issues, separation,
  divorce, property settlement, mediation, family
  violence
• Seated in groups of 4-7 to discuss case studies
  one facilitator per group to clarify case
  studies/ explain Australian law/ record
  participants responses
• NAATI accredited interpreters

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Community consultations

• Consultations held with aim of project learning
• participants traditional means of dealing with
  family law situations, taking into account
  cultural, religious and community issues
• current understanding of Australian family law
• information needs of each community

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Key findings

• Many participants felt that
• mainstream services do not respect and are not
  interested to learn cultural practices/experiences
  /beliefs of new and emerging migrant communities
  
• mainstream services tend to group Asians,
  Africans or Middle Easterners homogenously,
  without thought for individual needs and
  complexities within groups the participants

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Key findings

• general distrust of government structures and
  fear of being judged, misunderstood and/or
  further victimised (Police, lawyers, counselling
  mediation services, complaints bodies)
• community workers, leaders and members want to
  know and trust presenters/ educators/
  facilitators especially when dealing with
  sensitive topics like child protection and family
  violence
• concern that mainstream services are keen to
  consult and collect information about CALD
  communities, but less enthusiastic to provide
  appropriate services after a consultation

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Key findings

• mainstream services must be aware that life in
  Australia is very different from life in a
  refugee camp (from household appliances used
  daily in Australia being new and unfamiliar, to
  health/medical practices), monitor our
  assumptions and prejudices
• when help is needed in Australia an appointment
  is necessary (often an alien concept)

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Key findings

• hunger for factual, clear and relevant
  information on Australian laws, regardless of how
  these laws might contradict religious or cultural
  beliefs which is
• delivered in participants own language (using
  interpreters)
• presented by people who are sensitive to and
  respectful of participants culture and who have
  some understanding of the life participants left
  behind in their countries of origin

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Building relationships

• Education programs

• Building relationships
• Education methodology
• Content (depends on individual community)

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Education Program Methodology

• Workshop form
• Interactive, designed to match language skills
  and educational background of group
• Accredited interpreters
• Use of culturally appropriate fictional stories/
  case studies to identify legal issues and
  resolutions (foster privacy of group members by
  avoiding individual group members experiences)
• Participants generate culturally traditional
  dispute resolution options and those available
  through Australian legal system

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Stage Two Project Overview

• Education programs continue
• Increased staffing allows for more participatory
  models of CLE
• Ongoing consultation (in CLE preparation and
  formal participant evaluation)
• Publication of Legal Education Kit

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What does the Project look like?

• 3 person team designs and delivers customised
  legal education sessions on Australian Family Law
  to CALD communities in SA
• 1 Legal Education Officer (1FTE)
• 2 Bi-cultural administrative officers (1FTE)
• Part of the Commissions Education Training
  Unit

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Four case studies

• Enough is Enough
• Introduction to Australian Family Law - A
  workshop for Shia Muslim Religious and Community
  Leaders
• Law for Interpreters Course
• Liberian Womens Family Violence Forum
• Introduction to Australian Family Law A
  workshop for African community members in
  partnership with the African Communities Council
  of SA (ACCSA)

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Enough is EnoughThe Nile Family Goes to Court

• Role play staged at the new Family Law Courts
  during Law Week 2006, in partnership with the
  Family Law Courts Adelaide Registry staff and
  African community workers and leaders .

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Enough is Enough

• Demonstrated various stages of the Family Law
  System, through the experiences of a fictional
  family of Liberian humanitarian entrants
  marriage breakdown traditional marriage
  counselling by community elders intervention by
  a Liberian problem-solving committee compulsory
  Family Court Mediation and Interim Hearing which
  culminated in interim orders.

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Enough is Enough

• Background
• CALD Project represented on the African Families
  and Communities Group and worked closely with
  Family Law Courts (SA/NT Registry) staff on their
  Harmony Partnerships Programme
• Law Week an opportunity to engage African
  communities in family law education

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Enough is Enough

• Needs analysis with African community workers and
  leaders revealed
• Male is traditional head of family (including
  bread winner) but common in Australia for role
  reversal common to take place as women often find
  paid work and become the financial provider while
  males may struggle to find suitable employment
• Females are often overloaded with both domestic
  chores on top of external work
• Males often feel powerless in Australia
• African women call on services to educate their
  men about law and society in Australia
• Family violence of major concern to African women
• Bride price and its effect on separation,
  divorce, property settlement and children
• In many African cultures children over 2yo
  remain with the husbands family in the case of
  divorce

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Enough is Enough

• Choosing the learning method
• African culture is predominantly an oral/story
  telling culture with printed material having
  limited impact
• Therefore theatre education useful

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Enough is Enough

• Cast of African community workers and leaders
  contributed to the script which ensured that
• The scenario was familiar and topical
• Appropriate language and cultural practices were
  showcased (e.g. Liberian problem solving
  committee)
• Cast learnt about the Australian family law
  system (high impact considering their high
  community status)
• Their communities attended the event

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Enough is Enough

• Play DVD excerpt
• Note audience participation

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Workshop with Shia Community and Religious Leaders

• Background
• Invitation from DIMA to educate Shia religious
  and community leaders on Australian marriage and
  divorce laws
• In response to May 2006 DIMA consultation with
  Shia Imams who inferred that marriages and
  divorces are solemnized in South Australia by
  Imams in accordance with Sharia, but without
  satisfying the Marriage Act or Family Law Act

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Shia Community and Religious Leaders

• The CALD Project conducted a needs analysis with
  community leaders from the two major Shia
  nationality/ethnic groups in SA the Iraqi and
  Hazara Afghan groups

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Shia Community and Religious Leaders

• Learning objectives devised with the community
  leaders before workshop
• understand how to complete a legally valid
  marriage in Australia
• know the options available for resolving family
  relationship problems (via legal/ courts system
  and other)
• understand how to divorce in Australian (plus
  difference between divorce property settlement)
• understand the options (via legal system other)
  available to settle care of children upon
  separation
• understand the basic principles of the FLA in
  relation to children
• understand that family disputes do not inevitably
  have to end in court system (i.e. most families
  make private agreements )
• know where to get legal advice, assistance
  representation

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Shia Community and Religious Leaders

• Workshop learning method adopted, using story
  telling scenarios
• See Shia Workshop PowerPoint handouts from page 2.

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Law for Interpreters Course

• The Commission partnered TafeSA Interpreters
  Preparatory Course to work with interpreting
  students from new and emerging migrant
  communities
• Access to justice for new and emerging migrant
  communities impossible without good quality,
  reliable and accredited interpreters

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Law for Interpreters Course

• Alarming fall off rates of NE community
  interpreters
• poor pay for legal interpreting jobs
• NE communities interpreters often fled countries
  of origin due to legal system/ government
• vastly different legal systems, court procedures,
  legal concepts terms (standards of proof etc.)
• Infrequent work equals drop in skills and
  confidence
• After listening to students fears/concerns the
  project placed emphasis on practical, action
  based learning
• Designed and facilitated moot court workshops for
  the course

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Law for Interpreters Course

• Partnership between TafeSa, Commission SA
  Courts Administration Authority
• Simulated exercises such as the mock trials (with
  magistrate generously participating) are crucial
  from a training perspective and particularly
  critical for prospective interpreters, many of
  whom had bad experiences with the justice system
  in their countries of origin.
• New initiative being developed in partnership
  with SA state courts to do follow up training and
  development for NE community interpreters

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Liberian Womens Forumon Family Violence

• Previous workshop concept driven some
  consequent confusion and concern
• Practical information delivered via concrete
  examples
• In partnership with SAPOL
• Monthly sessions scheduled for next 3 months

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African Communities Council SA Intro to
Australian Family Law

• What not to do!
• Workshop prepared in response to ACCSA invitation
• Poor attendance by African community
• No partnership between project and attendees
• No pre-workshop consultation with attendees or
  leaders
• Insufficient relationship between community and
  Project

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What we have learned

• What closed doors can participatory CLE open for
  new and emerging migrants?
• Empowering through participation and quality
  informtaion removes misconceptions and thus
  reduces fear, promotes a sense of welcome,
  belonging, healing in Australia
• Building CALD community members trust in
  institutions (police, legal aid, complaints
  authorities such as HEREOC) promotes a sense of
  safety and thus empowers
• When new and emerging migrant community members
  discover that most traditional practices
  co-exist with Australian law allows for full
  self expression of their religious and cultural
  identities very powerful part in the
  resettlement for people who are often still
  dealing with trauma

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What we have learned

• Credibility
• Get out of the office into the community to meet
  people on their own ground.
• Build trusting relationships. Foster trust
  throughout the CLE process.
• Ask for feedback and keep checking that what
  youre delivering is what the community actually
  wants and needs
• One size does not fit all be mindful of
  diversity of cultural practices, religious
  beliefs, language barriers between and among
  community groups.

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What we have learned

• Acknowledge
• Be upfront - the Australian family law system is
  one of many family law systems throughout the
  world and is not inherently any more sensible or
  fair than any other
• Speak to commitments not concerns

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What we have learned

• Participatory
• Have the CLE be community driven and
  participatory
• View CLE process as a loop or holographic do
  not think of the final session as the outcome or
  the moment of CLE
• Family law is an excellent place from which to
  build a bridge to the Australian legal system and
  laws in general

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What we have learned

• Relevant and useful
• Many people perceive the law as boring and
  irrelevant to their lives of problems. Ensure
  the CLE content is practical and relevant. That
  it relates directly to the community members
  lives and addresses their immediate needs. Use
  concrete examples.
• Have participants use their own knowledge base.
• Use the language of the community (you will only
  know this from strong community participation in
  the CLE development).

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What we have learned

• Utilise existing structures, work in partnership
  and pool resources (successful workshops other
  events stem from partnership)

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Practice Example small groups

• Case Study
• You are a legal educator in a community legal
  centre. You are contacted by a community worker
  from a local community organisation funded to
  provide settlement support to new migrants.
• The community worker notices that many of his
  African clients physically discipline their
  children, often hitting them with sticks. The
  community worker is concerned for the children
  and worried about legal consequences for the
  parents.
• The community worker tells you about a Liberian
  family whose 12 year old son is having difficulty
  in school. He is receiving negative reports and
  getting into fights with other children and being
  disruptive. The school has told the parents and
  the parents are upset. They migrated to give
  their children a better life. Negative reports
  from school are viewed extremely seriously. The
  father attempts to remedy the situation. He
  disciplines the boy physically, with a stick.
  The school principal becomes aware of this
  incident and tells the parents he has made a
  mandated notification to Child Services. The
  parents are fearful the government will take
  their child away from them.
• The community worker tells you that this familys
  experiences and fears are not uncommon. He asks
  you to provide community legal education around
  child protection for his organisations African
  clients.
• Describe how you would develop this community
  legal education.
• You may wish to consider
• How would I conduct a needs analysis?
• How would I define any behaviour changes that
  people want to achieve from the process?
• What content should be included?
• What learning methods should I use?
• How can I make the process participatory?

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Where to from here?

• Ethnospecific educators
• Continual project evaluation
• Knowledge sharing/ Legal Education Kit
• A new project title?!

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Project Contact Details

• Kate Howard
• Legal Education Officer
• Legal Services Commission of SA
• howard.kate_at_saugov.sa.gov.au
• [phone]
• GPO Box 1718 ADELAIDE SA 5001
• www.lsc.sa.gov.au

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Feedback Questions