An advocacy group is seeking 300 women who believe they have been failed by Ireland’s family court system to document their experiences for a planned submission to the United Nations Committee Against Torture.
The 300 Silenced Voices campaign was launched by Right to Transparency (RTT), a group advocating for reform of Ireland’s family law system, at an event in Dublin on Saturday.
It also called on the Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan to implement the recommendations of a May 2025 review for reform of the in-camera rule restricting the reporting of family law proceedings.
Saturday’s event was attended by about 30 survivors of intimate partner violence and abuse (IPVA) and coercive control, alongside experts in law, psychology, domestic violence, policing and victims’ rights.
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Lisa Ann Wilkinson, a barrister and founder of RTT, said that as part of the monitoring of states’ compliance with the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, civil society organisations can submit information to the UN Committee Against Torture.
The 300 Silenced Voices campaign will document issues reported by survivors, including allegations of domestic abuse or child safety concerns being ignored, minimised or dismissed; lack of trauma-informed courts; prolonged and costly litigation; and concerns around the use of biased expert evidence, she said.
RTT says the initiative is designed to identify whether recurring patterns within family law proceedings raise wider questions about Ireland’s obligations to protect survivors and children from cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
“For too long, individual mothers have believed they were fighting these battles alone,” said Wilkinson. “What we are hearing repeatedly is that many women describe strikingly similar experiences once domestic abuse enters the family court system.
“We are asking 300 mothers to come forward. Not because every case is the same, but because the scale and consistency of what survivors are reporting deserves rigorous examination.”
RTT says some mothers have reported that children disclosed sexual abuse but were later subjected to changes in custody or contact arrangements with the perpetrator. Other reported issues include children being required to maintain contact with, or being transferred into the care of, a parent charged with domestic violence offences.
Other women felt that domestic abuse and coercive control were completely overlooked, minimised or inadequately recognised during expert assessment and court proceedings.
The Irish initiative follows similar survivor-led efforts internationally to bring greater scrutiny to the handling of domestic abuse and child protection concerns within family justice systems.
“Family courts quite properly protect the privacy of children and families but privacy must not mean that systemic problems cannot be identified,” said Wilkinson.
“Where the same experiences are being reported by large numbers of survivors, there has to be a mechanism for examining whether something deeper is happening.”
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During the event, survivors raised issues about their experience with the assessors engaged to prepare what are known as Section 32 reports, involving interviews with the parties and children, for family law proceedings.
There was strong criticism of what survivors regarded as bias on the part of some assessors and an absence of appropriate qualifications. Several spoke of their words being “twisted” by assessors in their reports and many indicated they had children denied access to mental health services because the father would not consent.
Dr Ian McCabe, a clinical psychologist, said it appeared some of those doing Section 32 assessments were social workers and teachers who lacked appropriate qualifications and experience. There should be an independent report based on the voice of the child, he said.
Susan Leahy, a lecturer in the school of law at University of Limerick, said her view is that family disputes should not be dealt with by courts, for reasons including that judges and lawyers lack sufficient “cop on and empathy”.
Women who believe their experiences, or safety concerns relating to their children, were inadequately addressed through family law proceedings can participate at Right To Transparency’s website (righttotransparency.com).
