This paper responds to the Australian Law Reform Commission Review of the Family Law System. In particular, it addresses question 25 in the issues paper released in March 2018 - how should the family law system address misuse of process as a form of abuse in family law matters?  

This question encompasses the misuse of process in evidence gathering by, for example, issuing a subpoena to obtain access to sensitive material, such as a survivor’s therapeutic counselling records or sexual assault service records.

This paper outlines the problems associated with this practice and sets out a number of options and recommendations for change.