We call on the Government to bring forward an amendment to Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996 to close the Family Court gap for abuse survivors without shared children.

This amendment should require that rules of court and practice directions provide, for non-molestation and occupation order proceedings, protections equivalent to those in Practice Direction 12J: consideration of fact-finding where domestic abuse is alleged, treatment of abuse as a pattern of behaviour, restrictions on undertakings and cross-undertakings where violence has been used or threatened, and provision for special measures.