EUGENE–President Bill Clinton’s recent signing of a stronger Violence Against Women Act will have a direct benefit on Lane County women who are victims of domestic violence, through a clinic co-sponsored by the University of Oregon School of Law.

The new and expanded law covers women abused by their boyfriends and husbands, helps battered immigrant women and attacks "international traffic in human beings." It also helps provide the continuation of many services to victims of domestic violence, including the Lane County Domestic Violence Clinic. The clinic is part of the Stop Violence Against Women Project, which last month was awarded a federal renewal grant of $350,000 to continue and expand the clinic’s work.

"The reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act is an important step in the continued efforts to end domestic violence," says Merle Weiner, associate professor, UO School of Law and member of the Lane County Domestic Violence Council. "Domestic violence is rampant in Oregon– it takes a daily toll on adult victims and their children, as well as on Oregon’s economy."

The Lane County Domestic Violence Clinic is a joint project of the University of Oregon School of Law, Lane County Legal Aid Service, Womenspace and Sexual Assault Support Services. The clinic was founded in 1998 as part of the Stop Violence Against Women Project, which received a $281,000 grant from the federal Violence Against Women Office. The initial and renewal grants were awarded following a highly competitive process.

Critical to the clinic is the work of third-year UO law students who, with permission from the Oregon Supreme Court, represent clients in cases including contested restraining orders and divorces involving battered women seeking child custody. Students receive training by the local domestic violence shelter and sexual assault advocacy program and work under the supervision of a qualified attorney.

"Third-year law students, domestic violence advocates and attorneys working at the clinic assisted close to 600 Lane County victims of domestic violence during the 18 months of the initial grant period," says Weiner. "The renewal grant will allow us to help more victims and take on more complex cases."

The clinic is unique in that it provides clients with an attorney and advocate–a team approach that offers legal, emotional and social services referrals to victims of domestic violence. Clinic services are available to low income residents at no cost.

"Our students worked closely with clinic staff and were instrumental in helping victims move through the legal process," says Weiner. "The clinic provides valuable working experience for students and critical services to victims of domestic violence who might otherwise be left without legal resources."

In 1999, the Oregon office of the Violence Against Women Act reported that an estimated one in eight women statewide were victims of domestic violence in the previous one-year period and that three out of every four female victims experienced multiple acts of physical abuse.

"The clinic’s impact is significant," says Weiner. "It raises awareness within the courts, criminal justice system, law enforcement and social services arena of the needs of battered women. It helps create confidence that battered women will be provided with needed legal services and connected to community resources."

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