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Income and poverty status among women experiencing intimate partner violence: A positive social return on investment from civil legal aid services

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2024

James Teufel ,
Lynette M. Renner ,
Michael Gallo  and
Carolyn Copps Hartley
James Teufel*
Affiliation:
Office of Legal Services Innovation, Utah Supreme Court, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Lynette M. Renner
Affiliation:
School of Social Work, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA
Michael Gallo
Affiliation:
Institute in Macao, United Nations University, Macao SAR, China
Carolyn Copps Hartley
Affiliation:
School of Social Work, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
*
James Teufel, Office of Legal Services Innovation, Utah Supreme Court, Salt Lake City, UT, USA., Email: [email protected];[email protected]
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Abstract

We examined the economic status of women who experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) and sought civil legal aid services over 1 year. Women's average overall income increased, after accounting for both private income increases and public income decreases, by approximately $5500, and the odds of being in poverty 1 year after civil legal services decreased. The social return on investment estimate for total income impact relative to legal aid costs was 141%, meaning that women's overall income increased $2.41 for every $1 expended on legal aid services. Legal aid services can improve income and reduce poverty among women experiencing IPV.

Type
Articles
Information
Law & Society Review , Volume 55 , Issue 3 , September 2021 , pp. 405 - 428
Copyright
© 2021 Law and Society Association.

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Footnotes

How to cite this article: Teufel, James, Lynette M. Renner, Michael Gallo, Carolyn Copps Hartley. 2021. “Income and poverty status among women experiencing intimate partner violence: A positive social return on investment from civil legal aid services.“ Law & Society Review 55(3): 405-428. https://doi.org/10.1111/lasr.12572

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