UC Berkeley

This study is a reflection of the author's experience working as a family court judge for nine years in Taiwan. It lays out the practical problems in Taiwan’s legal system, in regards to domestic violence, which is mainly transplanted from the U.S. It explores the query as to whether problem-solving courts provide a helpful alternative, as well as examining the possible challenges of implementing a problem-solving court system.

This thesis begins with a statement of the problems of domestic violence court system in Taiwan, then synthesizes the literature review to introduce the Problem-Solving Courts from a broader perception of specialized courts and also Domestic Violence Courts, and their transformation into Integrated Domestic Violence Courts. This is followed by the description of Taiwan’s domestic violence legal system and its practical matters. Before attempting to propose a localized problem-solving court—the Integrated Family Court— as an alternative for Taiwan, the author makes comparisons of domestic violence case handling between Domestic Violence Courts in the U.S. and Taiwanese Courts through the lens of Therapeutic Jurisprudence and Restorative Justice. Lastly, the author depicts recommendations and explains how the proposed Integrated Family Court may provide a solution to the mentioned problems and its possible challenges.