Lawyers Can (and Should) Use Domestic Violence Lethality Assessments Too

What if there was an easy way to identify clients victimized by domestic violence who are at increased risk of becoming victims of homicide or severe assault? Or a way to prioritize and identify these risks to aid in their presentation in court? What if there was a way to assess the risk of danger to a client to help identify the need to refer a client for safety planning and other services? Or to help a client understand why child services is adamant that the client must have no continuing contact with the perpetrator if she wants to keep her children? What if there was a way to quantify for your judge, or at least help your judge see, the danger of continuing violence to your client? Wouldn’t such a tool be useful in your family law or domestic violence practice? Wouldn’t such a tool be beneficial for your client, who, above all else, wants to stay alive?

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