Explore the vast range of titles available.

Using Scotland as a case study, this paper identifies key areas in which there could be potential reform for women who kill their abusive partners. The study focuses on two particular areas: the use of specialised courts and the use of expert evidence on coercive control. The paper concludes that there exist multiple avenues of reform with the potential to improve women's experiences of the criminal justice system. However, for these to be utilised, there must be clear recognition that cases of this type are domestic abuse cases. As such, they should be considered firmly within current national domestic abuse policy rather than continuing to sit outside existing frameworks.

The discourse about domestic violence has developed in patriarchal societies, and so we position our understanding of 'mother' within a patriarchal framework. We explore the ways in which 'mothering' and 'mother blame' have been constructed within that framework and how this becomes relevant in the context of domestic violence and child welfare social work. We review literature from Australia, Canada, England and Wales, and the United States of America that has focused on child welfare responses to mothers experiencing domestic violence and abuse. On the basis of that review, we argue that mothers are responsibilised for violence and abuse they do not perpetrate. We show that the way legislation operates in some jurisdictions facilitates hegemonic, patriarchal constructions. We call for a review of current child welfare social work policy and practice in which domestic violence is present.