On July 1, 2020, domestic violence survivors in Florida received expanded legal protections that include their pets. Governor Ron DeSantis signed the bipartisan Senate Bill 1082 into law in June, 2020 allowing courts to include their pets in restraining orders against abusers.1 Perpetrators of coercive control may target pets as a means of inducing fear and submission in the victim, putting their lives at risk….
Legal and Justice
The criminalization of coercive control is one of the most significant developments in domestic abuse law of the past decade — and one of the most unevenly implemented. England and Wales led the way in 2015. Scotland followed with broader legislation in 2018. Ireland enacted the Domestic Violence Act in 2019. Australia’s New South Wales introduced a standalone offense in 2024. In the United States, Hawaii and Connecticut have enacted coercive control laws, with active legislative efforts underway in additional states. Globally, the picture remains fragmented — and the gap between legislation existing and legislation being effectively enforced remains significant in every jurisdiction.
This section covers the legal landscape of coercive control: how it is defined in law, where it is criminalized, how it is prosecuted, how evidence is gathered and presented, and how survivors can navigate legal and institutional systems that were not always built to recognize non-physical patterns of abuse. It draws on the Global Coercive Control Legislation Index — the first systematic index of its kind on the web, established in 2020 and updated as legislation evolves — and on Manya Wakefield’s specialist knowledge of coercive control dynamics in family law and criminal proceedings.
For survivors navigating the family court system or criminal proceedings involving coercive control, a legal strategy advisory is available through recovery coaching.
Victoria MP Laurel Collins’ proposed coercive control legislation passes third reading in Canada’s House of Commons
Massachusetts House unanimously passes Bill H 4744 to ban coercive control and revenge porn awaiting Gov. Healey’s signature for enactment.
Queensland passes groundbreaking coercive control legislation to tackle intimate partner violence and femicide in honor of Hannah Clarke.
An alarming report shows that Ireland’s police received an alarming 60,000 domestic violence reports in 2023.
An alarming report from the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence reveals that the state’s decision to ignore the urgent need to expand existing legislation to include coercive control has made it a hotspot for intimate partner abuse in the United States. According to Arizona’s Family, the state has one of the highest rates of domestic violence fatalities…
The Vermont House of Representatives passes groundbreaking the H.27 Bill to combat coercive control and protect survivors.
The Massachusetts House of Representatives unanimously passes legislation to criminalize revenge porn and coercive control.
Manslaughter by coercive control is the legal recognition that perpetrators can be held responsible when abuse drives a victim to suicide.
In Episode 21 of the Narcissistic Abuse Rehab Podcast, we delve into the topic ‘Julie Levine: A Coercive Control Advocate Battles A Rare Form of Cancer,’ and the disturbing similarities between Julie and Catherine Kassenoff’s experiences of coercive control, child custody in the Westchester Family Court, and adverse health outcomes. Like Catherine, Julie has allegedly suffered from years of cruel post-separation abuse from…