One in four cases before NSW local courts last year related to domestic violence, data reveals

The Downing Centre local court in Sydney. The number of domestic violence-related cases before NSW local courts has grown to 26% in 2023. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

A quarter of all matters before local courts in New South Wales last year were related to domestic violence, new data shows, as community legal services warn of a critical lack in funding to help victim-survivors seek justice.

Data from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (Bocsar) showed 26% of matters finalised in local courts in 2023 were related to domestic violence, up from 20% in 2019.