download print version
send page to a friend

New Resource Helps Domestic Violence Survivors Overcome Top Challenges

WASHINGTON, DC –– To mark Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Women Work! The
National Network for Women’s Employment and the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission
on Domestic Violence partnered to produce Finding a Lawyer, a valuable new resource for domestic violence survivors. Finding a Lawyer is the latest installment in Women Work!’s tip sheets series, which provides women with straightforward information about getting an education, finding a job, maintaining financial stability, understanding their rights and balancing work and life.

"Every week, women from across the country call our toll-free hotline seeking advice on how to find a lawyer to consult about domestic violence and the divorce and child custody issues that stem from it,” explained Jill Miller, Women Work! President and CEO. “To address this pressing need, we teamed up with the ABA Commission on Domestic Violence to develop a resource to help survivors understand the basics about finding and working with a lawyer.”

"Access to legal services and improved economic status are the top two factors affecting declines in intimate partner violence, according to recent research,” explained Rebecca Henry, Senior Staff Attorney at the ABA Commission on Domestic. “This partnership is an exciting opportunity to provide women with the information and tools that we know will help them protect themselves.”

Nearly one in every three women experiences at least one physical assault by a partner during
adulthood, according to the Department of Justice. Women who experience domestic violence find it easier to leave an abusive partner if they are economically self-sufficient. Yet research shows that abusers often interfere with a woman’s ability to maintain employment, thus jeopardizing her financial stability and making it difficult for her to leave the violent situation.

"As the nation’s largest network of education and job training organizations for women, we see far too many women struggling to leave violent and dangerous situations,” explained Miller. "Our member organizations help women gain the ability to support themselves and their children without relying on an abusive partner. Now with our Finding a Lawyer tip sheet, we are also helping survivors navigate a path through the justice system to complete independence.”

Finding a Lawyer and other Women Work! tip sheets are available free for download in the resources section of www.womenwork.org. The views expressed in the tip sheet have not been approved by the House of Delegates or the Board of Governors of the American Bar Association and, accordingly, should not be construed as representing the policy of the American Bar Association.

Women Work! The National Network for Women’s Employment is a nonprofit, nonpartisan
organization that advances economic justice and equality for women through education, advocacy and organizing. Since 1978, the Network has assisted more than 10 million women to successfully enter, re-enter and advance in the workforce. Through supporting, advocating and increasing women’s economic self-sufficiency, Women Work! members strengthen families and communities.

# # #