Chapter 5: Family Violence

• Date: 14 April 2025

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Family Violence

A. INTRODUCTION

One of the best kept secrets of the twentieth century was the incidence of violence in sup-

posedly intact families.1 It is only in the last twenty-ve years that family violence has be en

recognized as a serious social and legal problem that encompasses the abuse of elderly parents

or grandparents as well as spousal and child abuse.

In the words of MacDonald J, of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, in MAB v LAB:

Domestic violence most commonly refers to a situation where an adult intimate or former

intimate partner attempts by psychological, physical, nancial or sexual means to coerce,

dominate or control the other. is violence reveals a pattern of conduct that may be verbal,

physical or sexual. e conduct targets another person’s self-esteem and emotional well-being.

It can include humiliating, belittling, denigrating, intimidating, controlling or isolating behav-

iour. It can include physical assaults, sexual assaults, sexual humiliation, sleep deprivation,

extortion, economic coercion, threats to harm or kill, destruction of property, threatened

or attempted suicide, litigation harassment and litigation tactics, manipulation of children,

of relatives, of investigation agencies and helping personnel, surveillance, monitoring, and

 See, generally, Desmond Ellis, Managing Domestic Violence: A Practical Handbook for Family Lawyers

(Toronto: LexisNexis Canada, ); Linda C Neilson, Responding to Domestic Violence in Family Law,

Civil Protection & Child Protection Cases,  CanLII Docs , February ; Jennifer Koshan, JanetE

Mosher & Wanda A Wiegers, Domestic Violence and Access to Justice: A Mapping of Relevant Laws,

Policies and Justice System Components Across Canada, CanLIIDocs; and see Joseph Di Luca,

Erin Dann & Breese Davies, “Best Practices Where ere Is Family Violence (Criminal Law Perspective),”

online: www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/cj-jp/fv-vf/bpf v-pevf/index.html; Department of Justice, Canada,

“HELP Toolkit: Identifying and Responding to Family Violence for Family Law Legal Advisers” ( January

) online: www.justice.gc.ca/eng/-df/help-aide/index.html; Jennifer Koshan, Janet Mosher & Wanda

Wiegers, “COVID-, Domestic Violence, and Technology-Facilitated Abuse” ( July ), online:

ABlawg, http://ablawg.ca/wp-content/uploads///Blog_JK_JM_WW_COVID_Surveillance.pdf.

And for a special issue on Intimate Partner Violence, see Family Court Review, December . See also

various articles on family violence in Canadian Journal of Family Law () : CanLIIDocs .

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stalking. e abuse and violence in intimate partnerships has a complex reciprocal dynamic

not found in violence that occurs between strangers.2

And as Benotto JA, of the Ontario Court of Appeal, observe d in Ahluwalia v Ahluwalia:

Intimate partner violence is a pervasive social problem. It takes many forms, including

physical violence, psychological abuse, nancial abuse and intimidation. In Canada, nearly

half of women and a third of men have experienced intimate partner violence and rates are

on the rise. What was once thought to be a private matter is now properly recognized for its

widespread and intergenerational eects.3

B. ABUSE OF THE ELDERLY

A sadly neglected aspect of abuse that has come to the forefront since the 1990s is abuse of

the elderly.4 Although such abuse has been found in situations involving institutional care, it

more frequently involves younger family members, often children or grandchildren.

e most common abuse of the elderly is nancial abuse, which is often accompanied by

emotional abuse. e retirement savings of an elderly parent or grandparent may be squan-

dered by children or grandchildren. Monthly pension or disability cheques may be withheld.

Children and grandchildren may “jump the gun” on prospective inheritances without any

thought for the impact of such conduct on the elderly parent or grandparent. eft of money

or possessions represents more than 60 percent of all cases of abuse of the elderly. In some

instances, resistance by the elderly person may result in physical abuse.

It has been estimated that at least 4 percent and perhaps as many as 15 percent of the

elderly in Canada are abused nancially, emotionally, or physically by their children, grand-

children, spouses, or caregivers. Health and Welfare Canada has estimated that more than

315,000 Canadians over sixty-ve years of age are victims of abuse. However, the incidence

of abuse is likely to be much higher because of the ease with which it can be concealed by

family members.

e characteristics of the abused victim are similar to those identied with respect to

the “battered wife syndrome.” Victims of elderly abuse feel helpless and sense that they have

no place to go in order to avoid the abuse. ey often have low self-esteem, are dependent

on the abuser, and lack the physical, emotional, and often nancial ability to withdraw from

the abusive environment. ey are fearful of being abandoned or sent to an institution; they

are ignorant of their legal rights; and they are often isolated or unable to communicate.

Abuse of the elderly is not a new social problem but its incidence is increasing with

the aging of the Canadian population. In 1991, 11.6 percent of the population of Canada

was over sixty-ve years of age. By 2031, it will be more than 22 percent. Although federal

and provincial governments, universities, and social agencie s are beginning to show some

interest in dening the boundaries and potential solutions to the societal problem of abuse

  NSSC  at para .

  ONCA  at para .

 See, generally, P Lynn McDonald et al, Elder Abuse and Neglect in Canada (Toronto: Butterworths,

); see also Manitoba Law Reform Commission, Report No , Adult Protection and Elder Abuse

(Winnipeg: e Commission, December ).

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