From Victims to Litigants

32 Pages Posted: 26 Jun 2016 Last revised: 3 May 2017

See all articles by Elizabeth L. MacDowell

Elizabeth L. MacDowell

University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law

Date Written: 2016

Abstract

This Article reports findings from an ethnographic study of self-help programs in two western states. The study investigated how self-help assistance provided by partnerships between courts and nongovernmental organizations implicates advocacy and access to justice for domestic violence survivors. The primary finding is that self-help programs may inadvertently work to curtail, rather than expand, advocacy resources. Furthermore, problems identified with self-help service delivery and negative impacts on advocacy systems may be explained by the structure of work within self-help programs and the nature of partnerships to provide self-help services. The Author uncovers previously unseen impacts of self-help programs on survivors and on the resources to help them. She concludes with a discussion of the implications for future research directions and describes what can be done now to improve self-help services for survivors.

Keywords: self-help, pro se litigants, domestic violence, self-represented litigants, access to justice, family court

Suggested Citation

MacDowell, Elizabeth Lillian, From Victims to Litigants (2016). Hastings Law Journal, Vol. 67, 2016, UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2800331

Elizabeth Lillian MacDowell (Contact Author)

University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law ( email )

4505 South Maryland Parkway
Box 451003
Las Vegas, NV 89154
United States
702-895-2080 (Phone)

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
51
Abstract Views
367
Rank
693,387
PlumX Metrics