Abstract:
Parents and other adults responsible for children’s care and protection in Victoria are subject to inconsistent messages regarding the lawful limits of physical discipline, or corporal punishment. Different approaches are taken by civil, welfare, family and criminal courts, by different government agencies, and in different jurisdictions, producing confusion amongst professionals and the general public.
This collaborative research at Monash University between the Faculty of Law and Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (Child Abuse Prevention Research Australia), funded by the Legal Services Board, Victoria explores these sources of confusion and proposes policy and legislative reform, as well as professional education measures.
This Report presents the findings from an extensive review of reported Australian case law where physical punishment of a child has been discussed in some detail, in criminal law, family law and other jurisdictions, together with the perspectives of practising lawyers, magistrates and judges working in various jurisdictions who completed surveys or participated in interviews.