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Over half of all criminal cases in Canada involve intimate partner violence or sexual assault. And those are the exact cases being quietly pushed to the bottom of the pile when courtrooms run out of time and resources.

In part two of her conversation with Alex and Amanda, Kathryn Marshall breaks down how trial stacking is working against abuse survivors, what the Hockey Canada trial revealed about how the criminal court system treats victims, why she believes Zoom court has eroded accountability, and exactly what she is asking the federal government to do — before she has to drag them through every court in the country to get it done.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

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Hundreds of domestic violence and sexual assault cases are being thrown out before they ever get to trial. Abusers are walking away with no criminal record and nothing on their file. And survivors are being silenced in the process.

Kathryn Marshall of Marshall Law is suing the federal government over it. In this episode she breaks down exactly how the justice system is failing abuse survivors, why she now tells some clients to skip criminal court entirely, and what it actually looks like to take the government to court.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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In this episode, Alex and Amanda get candid about the reality of Mother's Day — why it so often becomes the most exhausting day of the year, why divorced moms are doing something categorically different from married moms who think a solo weekend qualifies as the same experience, and why giving yourself permission to skip the celebration entirely is not only valid but sometimes the healthiest choice. They also get into mom judgment, the mental load of co-parenting versus counter-parenting, AI and homework, and what it actually means to launch your kids into adulthood in 2025.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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Stepmoms are expected to show up like a parent, step back like a stranger, and never complain about any of it. Jamie Simkins — licensed therapist, stepmom coach, and stepmom twice over — has been there herself. In this episode from the vault, she gets into the real dynamics of blended family life: navigating a high conflict bio mom, connecting with stepkids before ever trying to discipline them, why stepdads get to be heroes while stepmoms become the scapegoat, and why she calls being a stepmom a spiritual experience.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

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One in three Canadian girls has experienced childhood sexual abuse. One in eight boys. These aren't abstract numbers — they're children in classrooms, on hockey teams, in families across the country.

Ismena Toscan is 15 years old. She is a survivor, the founder of the Hula Hoop Initiative, the author of two children's books on body autonomy and personal safety, and someone who has already spoken at the House of Commons in support of the Keeping Children Safe Act. In this episode she talks about why preventive education has to begin long before anything goes wrong, what the hula hoop concept teaches young children about their own boundaries and personal space, why she chooses the word survivor over victim, and what parents can do right now to build the kind of open relationship that makes children feel safe enough to speak up.

This one is for every parent, every educator, and every person who believes children deserve to feel safe.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

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Mae Scott joins Alex and Amanda to share the full story of escaping her abusive, narcissistic ex‑husband, a respected lawyer who was eventually sentenced to 12 years to life in prison. This episode goes inside the escalating violence, the therapist who warned her she had to leave immediately, and the five felony charges that finally led to his conviction. Then we walk through the part no one talks about: the nine‑month, $100,000 battle for supervised visitation, the foreclosure, and the judge who ordered Mae to pay her abuser $550 a month in spousal support while raising three kids on $54,000 a year.

In this episode, we cover:

- How abusers hide behind a perfect public image and professional status while terrorizing their families at home

- Why a marriage counselor told Mae, “You and your children have to leave”

- What really happens when you call the police for the first time after years of abuse

- The smear campaign: wild accusations filed in court documents with zero evidence

- How the family court system can punish survivors (foreclosure, no support, massive legal costs)

- The nine months and $100,000 it took to secure supervised visitation for her children

- What Mae wants other survivors to know about documenting abuse and planning to leave

More 👇

If you’re searching for stories about domestic violence survivors, divorcing a narcissist, abusive lawyers, family court failures, coercive control, or financial abuse, this conversation with survivor and advocate Mae Scott is for you.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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In part two of this conversation, Philip breaks down the legislation that came out of that loss — Keira’s Law Law, passed unanimously across all party lines — and what it actually does to change how judges are trained on domestic violence and coercive control. He also gets into why reunification therapy has no standardized training, no governing body, and no consistent methodology, why the Department of Justice's own HELP Toolkit confirms abuse is relevant to parenting but that knowledge still hasn't trickled down to the front lines, and what he would say to a victim who is afraid to come forward because they've already seen the system fail.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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In this episode, Alex and Amanda sit down with Philip Viater, a family lawyer with 17 years of experience at VP Family Law Group, for one of the most candid conversations about the failures of family court we've ever had. Philip breaks down why parental alienation is predominantly used as a defense against abuse rather than a genuine diagnosis, why he views it as junk science not recognized by the DSM, and why the moment someone raises it in his cases he considers it a red flag. He also explains the concept of institutional betrayal trauma — what happens when a victim turns to psychologists, judges, social workers, and child protection services for help and gets re-victimized by the very systems designed to protect them.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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In this episode, Alex and Amanda sit down with family lawyers Sean Valentine and Ryan Osbourne — co-creators of I Do Prenup, an app that lets couples generate a real marriage contract in hours for a fraction of traditional legal costs. They break down who actually needs a prenup and why the answer is basically everyone, what three things must be included in any agreement, why couples who do prenups have lower divorce rates, what happens when grandma and grandpa are the ones demanding it, and why infidelity clauses — no matter how satisfying they sound — are completely unenforceable.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.

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In this episode, Alex and Amanda sit down with Dale and Annabel, the duo behind We Are More Than Moms, to talk about why the postpartum identity shift is so disorienting, how they built a thriving community for career-driven women who refuse to shrink themselves after having kids, and why the early parenting years are such a genuine test of a relationship. Dale also shares what it was like growing up as a child of divorce — including years in a nesting arrangement — and how that experience made her more intentional about her own marriage. Annabel gets into navigating the holidays with multiple sets of divorced parents, and both share why authenticity online matters more than ever in a space full of curated perfection.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our podcast guest are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or the podcast. We value diverse perspectives and aim to provide a platform for thoughtful discussion and exploration of different ideas.

Got any comments, suggestions or queries? We'd love to hear from you! DM us on Instagram @dirty.laundry.podcast to be featured on one of our upcoming episodes.  

Also, don't forget to rate and review our show on your favourite podcast player.