Coercive control is rarely visible in a single incident. It is a pattern, built over time, that restricts a person's liberty, autonomy and everyday life. When that pattern is not understood, victim-survivors can be misread, their responses misinterpreted, and the systems meant to protect them can become part of the harm.
I prepare specialist Systemic Coercive Control (SCC) reports that make these patterns visible and help decision-makers understand what has been happening, and what it means for safety.
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Reports are generally covered by legal aid. If you have a legal aid lawyer, they can request a quote from me and apply for approval to fund the report as part of your case. Once funding is approved, we can begin the assessment.
If you don't have a lawyer or aren't eligible for legal aid, please get in touch to discuss private funding options.
To request a quote, lawyers can email hello@jacki.co.nz with a brief outline of the matter and the proceedings the report is for.
A Systemic Coercive Control (SCC) Specialist Report is a structured assessment of the nature, pattern, and impact of coercive control in a relationship. It is prepared by a specialist practitioner with extensive expertise in coercive control, social entrapment, and systemic coercive control — and it offers something that standard assessments cannot.
The SCC report provides a qualified specialist practitioner opinion on whether the described pattern of behaviour is consistent with coercive control as defined in the research literature (Stark, 2007). This is not simply a summary of what happened. It is an analytical assessment of whether the pattern, the context, and the impact of the conduct constitute a course of strategic and oppressive conduct and what that means for the primary victim’s liberty, autonomy, and safety. It draws on over 18 years of family violence practice, doctoral research in institutional systems abuse, and mentorship by Professor Evan Stark, the leading international authority on coercive control.
The report goes beyond the relational pattern to analyse social entrapment across three layers: the direct relational coercive control that produced psychological captivity; the systems abuse - including how social communities, organisations, professionals, formal institutions, and legal processes were manipulated by the perpetrator or failed to protect; and the structural and systemic inequities that compounded the primary victim’s vulnerability at every layer. This three-layer analysis makes visible the conditions that explain why leaving was not straightforward, why help-seeking produced limited results, and why the primary victim’s responses reflect constrained options rather than choice.
For Family Court matters, the report specifically documents the use of legal processes, parenting pathways, and court mechanisms as instruments of post-separation control - connecting this to the wider pattern of coercive conduct. Legal systems abuse is one of the most significant and least understood dimensions of post-separation coercive control, and one that the SCC framework is specifically designed to make visible to the court.
Reports can be used in criminal proceedings, protection order applications,legal aid write-offs and Family Court parenting and care disputes.
A free conversation to talk about your situation and whether an SCC report is the right pathway. No obligation.
A structured narrative process across multiple sessions, capturing your experience in your own words across 20 assessed domains of coercive control. The Pattern Index provides a structured assessment of the pattern. This stage can stand alone for protection order applications or where legal aid does not cover the full report.
Drawing on your Narrative Map, Pattern Index, supporting documents, and the legal bundle where relevant, a specialist report is prepared for the relevant court or proceedings. You review the report before it is finalised. Nothing is filed without your knowledge and agreement.
A quote can be provided for legal aid approval on request. Legal aid fees are invoiced to the instructing lawyer. Other funding pathways may also be available — please enquire.
If you have a question please use the contact form below.
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