Statistics like these outline the severity and severity of the domestic epidemic in Canada. This is an epidemic with dramatic and negative effects that not only affect individuals, but communities as a whole, it is a crime that knows no economic, racial, ethnic or religious limits. “At some point in their lives, more than forty percent of women will experience violence, and in most cases this violence is at the hands of a man.” While research may suggest that these statistics may be underreported as many of these assaults go unrecorded, this is largely due to society's refusal to recognize such violence as a violation of women's human rights. The violence that Canada has experienced against women can be attributed to the result of an existing power structure in society. While there has been widespread recognition of this type of violence, the fact remains that there are many areas of society where women are still subjected to this type of violence and are in some way seen as responsible for men's behavior . Unfortunately, it has taken lawmakers too long to recognize domestic violence as a devastating situation that affects millions of people. The Canadian legal system until recently refused to acknowledge the reality of the violence epidemic. Socially, there has been a predisposition to treat the family unit as a “private sphere”, being reluctant to intervene in all but the most serious cases. Despite the politics of violence against women that others have documented over the past decade, it remains a major systemic problem. There have been significant changes in how not only Canada's social but also legal system responds to domestic abuse in both criminal and family law p...... middle of paper ... be made by preventing a a person to molest, annoy or molest the applicant or the minor entrusted to their care.” These types of civil orders are part of the civil process and are generally sought if the applicant is also seeking other civil remedies such as support or custody of their children. A civil order is comparable to that of an award in a criminal case, a party that a civil (restraining) order is obtained as part of a civil action in a family law proceeding by a victim or his or her lawyer. “If there is concern about police reluctance to enforce a civil order, it may be more helpful to obtain an award under Criminal Code s.810, which only requires the applicant to establish “reasonable grounds” for fear of harm to the victim or the victim's children." Police officers may be more willing to enforce such criminal code orders than simple civil orders.