An Estimation of the Economic Impact of Spousal
Violence in Canada, 2009
Research and Statistics Division
Department of Justice Canada
October 2013
The Costs of Violent Victimization
Why now?
 Large gap in Canadian research / Canadian research out of
date
 Interest in costing research from a wide range of stakeholders
(international, federal/provincial/territorial, NGOs)
 The importance of using a common unit of measurement
to include a wide diversity of stakeholders in the
conversation on spousal violence
2
Current Work on Costing
 Firearm-related crimes in Canada;
victim costs disaggregated by gender
 Spousal violence (ex and current spousal abuse);
disaggregated by gender
 Violent victimization – homicide, sexual assault, assault,
robbery, criminal harassment; disaggregated by gender




Administration of Justice Offences (criminal justice system)
Youth Criminal Justice System
Polices costs per incident by offence type (in progress)
Victimization of children and youth (in progress)
3
External Review
 Reviewers – expertise in costing and/or gender expertise








Dr. Rick Brown, Australian Institute of Criminology
Professor Michael Burns, Memorial University
Dr. Brent Davis, Australian Institute of Criminology
Professor Matthew Gray, Australian National University
Professor Holly Johnson, University of Ottawa
Professor Maryse Rinfret-Raynor, University of Quebec at Montreal
Dr. Adam Tomison, Australian Institute of Criminology
Professor Sylvia Walby, University of Lancaster
 Methodology reviewed – written comments and responses,
conference calls
 Draft report reviewed – written comments and responses,
conference calls
4
Impact Categories
 Impact borne by Justice System


Criminal Justice System
Civil Justice System
 Impact borne by Primary Victims



Health Care
Productivity Losses
Intangible Costs


Mental Health Care
Other Personal Costs
 Impact borne by Other Individuals and Systems




Funeral Services
Other People Harmed/Threatened
Loss to Employers
Negative Impact on Child Witnesses
5



Loss of Affection/Enjoyment to
Family Members
Social Services
Other Government Expenditures
Data Sources
 2009 General Social Survey, Cycle 23
 Uniform Crime Reporting Survey 2
 Examples of other major data sources:









Police Administration Survey
Adult Criminal Court Survey
Court Personnel and Expenditure Survey (CPES)
Adult Correctional Services Survey (ACS) and the Integrated
Correctional Services Survey (ICS)
National Ambulatory Care Reporting System
Discharge Abstract Database
National Physician Database
Government finance reports
Existing literature, studies and government reports
6
Key Challenges
 Lack of data/information
 Lack of access to data
 Limitations of Surveys, including General Social Survey
 Limitations of small, non-representative studies
7
Number of Incidents and Victims – The Attrition Pyramid
V.
Convictions
11,373 – no victim
information
IV.
Court cases
21,599 – no victim information
III.
Incidents cleared by charge
(UCR2, 2009): 34,859
with 33,809 victims
II.
Incidents reported to police (UCR2, 2009): 46,918
I.
Self-reported incidents (GSS, 2009): 942,000
with 335,697 victims – by gender
8
Number of Victims by Gender
Number of Victims of Spousal Violence in
Canada 2009, by gender
 Police-Reported Data, UCR2 2009
 81.2% female victims (38,082)
 18.8% male victims (8,836)
200,000
53.6%
46.4%
160,000
 Self-Reported Data, GSS 2009
 Ex-spousal violence
68,893 female victims
34,804 male victims
 Current spousal violence
111,000 female victims
121,000 male victims
52.2% 47.8%
120,000
male
female
66.4%
80,000
33.6%
40,000
-
Ex
9
Current
Overall
Impact borne by Criminal Justice System
 Total criminal justice
system costs were $320
million, where policing
services accounted for
the majority of total
expenditures (46%).
Corrections
31.7%
Police
45.5%
 Spousal violence
involving female victims
accounted for almost 85%
of the criminal justice
system expenditures.
Legal Aid
5.5%
Prosecution
7.9%
10
Court
9.5%
Impact borne by Civil Justice System
 The total civil justice system costs were $225 million, where 81% were
attributed to spousal violence against females.
 Civil protection orders: $2,272,200
 About 6,378 applications for restraining/protection orders where 4,983 were granted.
 Court/Legal aid costs for divorce and separation: $40,941,889
 It is estimated that $12,761,670 and $10,814,975 were pertaining to legal aid for
divorce and other family breakdown, respectively, which were primarily caused by
spousal violence.
 Total civil court costs for the 3,042 contested divorce cases were $3,495,798.
 Family service expenditures: $13,869,446.
 Child protection systems: $181,903,737
 Costs of providing foster care and formal kinship: $46,121,400.
 Costs associated with regular family visits and assessments for children with no
placement or children with an informal agreement with a relative: $116,032,512.
 Investigation costs for cases of exposure to spousal violence: $19,749,825,
11
Impact borne by Primary Victims
 Total Tangible Victim Costs: $525 million
 Total Intangible Victim Costs: $5,460 million
Tangible Victim Costs by Gender and Type of Cost, $Million
$240
$212
$200
$147
$160
$120
$59
$80
$37
$33
$40
$8
$16
$13
$0
Health Care
Mental Health Issues
Violence against females
Productivity Losses
Other Personal Costs
Violence against males
12
Impact borne by Third Parties
 Total third-party costs: $889,881,609
 About 77.7% were due to spousal violence against females
 Negative impacts on children exposed to spousal violence accounted for
26.4% ($235M) of third-party costs
•
•
Negative impacts considered include: hyperactivity, emotional disorders,
physical aggression, and delinquent acts against property
Costs include: medical costs, missed school days, lost future income, and
damaged and stolen property
 The remaining 73.6% ($655M) of the costs were incurred by family
members, other individuals, employers, and governments
•
•
•
•
•
•
Social services: $410,595,799
Other government expenditures: $116,260,000
Losses to employers: $68,541,415
Loss of affection to family members: $37,170,000
Other individuals harmed during the incidents: $11,246,120
Funeral expenses: $1,449,240
13
Summary 1: Who is bearing the IMPACTS?
 Total estimated costs of spousal violence in Canada:
Impact borne
by third-party
$890 (12.0%)
 Justice System: $545 million
 Primary Victims: $5,985 million
Impact
borne by
Justice
System
$545
(7.3)%
 Third-Party: $890 million
Third-party
Justice System
Victims
Impact borne
by victims
$5,985
(80.7%)
 About 74.1% of the total costs attributable to intangible costs for primary
victims and family members
 About 65.2% of costs attributable to spousal violence against females
14
Summary 2: Who is paying the COSTS?
 Total tangible costs (excluding negative impact on children exposed

to spousal violence) -- actual financial transactions were made
For the tangible costs, 79.2% attributable to spousal violence against
females
Tangible Costs by Who Pays, 2009 ($ million)
Lost Future Income to
Children
$228 M (3.1%)
Intangible Costs
$5,497 M (74.1%)
Individual
29.4%
Tangible Costs
$1,695 M (22.8%)
State
63.8%
15
Private sector
6.9%
Questions?
To access the full report of An Estimation of the Economic Impact of
Spousal Violence in Canada, 2009, please visit:
http://canada.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/cj-jp/fv-vf/rr12_7/rr12_7.pdf
The Team
Ting Zhang, PhD
Susan McDonald, LLB, PhD
Josh Hoddenbagh, MA
Katie Scrim, BA
Ting Zhang, PhD
Methodologist
Research and Statistics Division
Department of Justice Canada
284 Wellington, 6th floor
Ottawa, ON K1A 0H8
Tel: (613) 957-2811
Email: tzhang@justice.gc.ca
16