At UN Event, D.C. Bar President Sadina Montani Underscores Need for Integrated Court Models to Support Women

At UN Event, D.C. Bar President Sadina Montani Underscores Need for Integrated Court Models to Support Women

March 12, 2026

By Jeremy Conrad

In New York City on March 10, D.C. Bar President Sadina Montani addressed attendees of a corollary program during the 70th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.

At the side event organized by representatives from France and the United Kingdom to tackle the issue of gender-based violence, Montani provided a snapshot of the access to justice problem in the nation's capital. "In Washington, D.C. - one of the wealthiest cities in the world - in the Domestic Violence Division of our court, 88 percent of petitioners are unrepresented by counsel, as are 95 percent of defendants," Montani said. "That means the vast majority of women seeking a civil protection order from an abuser are doing so alone, without a lawyer, navigating a legal system that was not designed to be navigated without one."

The discussion examined the growing role of businesses in preventing gender-based violence, illustrating the need for a multi-stakeholder approach involving state actors, international institutions, civil society organizations - particularly associations specializing in supporting women victims of violence - the justice system, bar associations, and the private sector.

In addition to urging an increase in funding for legal services providers and support for pro bono attorneys, Montani also called for structural reform to address the issues impacting access to justice. She pointed to the District's leadership in this area, describing how in many jurisdictions survivors of domestic violence had to repeatedly re-tell their story to various courts to procure orders for custody, child support, or protection in a marathon of appearances that decreased efficiency, increased costs to the court and litigants, and emotionally taxed survivors.

"Washington, D.C., has taken a fundamentally different approach," Montani said. "Our Superior Court's Domestic Violence Division operates on the principle of 'one family, one judge.' It is an integrated model in which a single judge - with unified jurisdiction - sees the civil protection order, the criminal case, and the related family law matters." She noted that studies of consolidated systems showed fewer conflicting orders, better informed judicial decisions, better service delivery to victims and children, and fewer trips to the courthouse for survivors.

But the legal system cannot solve the problem alone, Montani said, emphasizing the important contributions that could be made by bar leaders and those from affinity organizations such as the Women's Bar Association of the District of Columbia and Bâtonnières du Monde. During her presidency, Montani has established a strong connection with the Bâtonnières du Monde, a new international women's bar association of which she is a member.

Montani concluded her remarks by commenting on how integrated court models illustrate the need for close coordination among leaders of bar associations, women's groups, businesses, and government.