Parental Alienation Doesn’t Belong in Custody Cases

Parents who are going through a divorce often have trouble finding a balance with their new parenting duties. Unfortunately, some parents have to deal with the other’s attempts to sabotage their relationship with their child. When one parent is poisoning the child’s mind against the other parent, the child is the one who suffers, so this isn’t something that should ever happen in a child custody case.

Parental alienation makes a child custody case much worse than it has to be. One parent is stuck trying to defend themselves while the other parent finds new methods for launching attacks. One issue that’s often present in these cases is that it’s difficult to prove parental alienation because doing so may require that the child speak out against one of their parents. This puts the child in a precarious position and can lead to long-lasting problems.

Going through parental alienation can be an emotional and unnerving experience when you’re the target of their attacks. You may notice that the alienator is lashing out and becoming very angry with every decision that’s made about custody. They might pitch a fit that they don’t get around-the-clock parenting time and custody, even if they haven’t ever taken much of an interest in parenting before. In reality, they’re lashing out about not having full control over everyone involved in the situation — including you.

If you’re involved in a divorce where your ex seems to be engaging in parental alienation, make sure that you let your attorney know. That’s the best way to learn about the options you might have to address the issue and how to tailor your divorce strategy with this problem in mind.