Joe Tucci spoke at a conference in Wodonga yesterday to help coach people in the family law sector on how to deal with children who have experienced violence or family breakdowns.

The Australian Childhoood Foundation chief executive said too often children are judged on their behaviour

Dr Tucci said he would also like to see a more national approach to family violence to stop kids getting caught in the crossfire.

“Trauma changes the way children think and feel, it changes their brain and their body,” Dr Tucci said.

“Once a child experiences stress from a relationship breakdown or family violence, they are constantly scanning their environment for the next threat.

“So when we make a decision about a child, we need to understand what they need and show more compassion and not judge them by their behaviour.”

The annual Albury Wodonga Family Law Pathways Conference was this year focused on who represents children during a family breakdown.

About 70 people in the family law realm including lawyers and service providers attended the seminar held at Wod-onga TAFE.

One of the main talking points was the complexity of the family law system.

At present separation is a federal matter dealt with in the civil court, whereas child protection is a state matter that goes before the criminal court system.

Upper Murray Family Cares chief executive Luke Rumbold said once you add living on the border of two states to the mix, it becomes very complicated to understand the system.

He hoped the day would result in a collective submission to the Attorney-General Senator George Brandis.

“Our intent is to make a submission based on the outcome of today,” Mr Rumbold said.

“Ultimately one system at one level would be nice, but there is more to it than that.

“If we can get as much consistency as possible to ease the differences, that is a positive step toward making it easier for families who use the family law system.”