Disrupting Court-as-Usual: Embedded Evaluation Research as an Equity Intervention in Domestic Violence Court

• In Event: Designing for Equity: Implementation and evaluation of programs across the health care, welfare, and justice sectors

Abstract

This presentation draws on our multi-year evaluation research on the Family Court Enhancement Project (FCEP), a federally funded demonstration initiative in the Cook County Domestic Violence Division, to examine how embedded sociological research can function as an equity intervention within a high-volume public court system. FCEP sought to improve safety outcomes in civil Orders of Protection cases involving parents who share children, with particular attention to safe visitation and mutually agreed upon parenting agreements.

Our evaluation research was embedded within the court’s reform process and conducted collaboratively with judges, court staff, and advocates. Using a mixed-methods design, which included systematic analysis of pre- and post-implementation case files and qualitative interviews with parents and court personnel, we examined changes in how cases involving children were handled, survivor parents’ ability to request and obtain available legal protections, and both parents’ perceptions of fairness, clarity, and safety with the process.

Findings documented measurable increases in requests for child custody and visitation provisions among self-represented petitioners following implementation of accessible informational materials and court triage practices. Qualitative data further indicated evolving child-centered culture and shifts in courtroom communication. As a demonstration site supported through Violence Against Women Act funding, lessons from implementation and evaluation informed program refinements and contributed to broader dissemination efforts.

Using FCEP as a case study, this session argues that embedded, collaborative evaluation research can disrupt entrenched institutional routines by reshaping how safety, access, and fairness are operationalized in practice and serves as an example of one model for putting sociology to work for a more equitable society.

Authors

• Gina Spitz, Loyola University Chicago

• Yasmeen Khayr, Loyola University Chicago