Litigating Parental Alienation

Name: Litigating Parental Alienation | Evaluating and Presenting an Effective Case in Court
Brand: American Bar Association
Price: 137.99 EUR
Availability: OnlineOnly

Evaluating and Presenting an Effective Case in Court

Ashish S. Joshi(Autor*in)

American Bar Association (Verlag)

Erschienen am 2. Mai 2022

344 Seiten

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978-1-64105-829-2 (ISBN)

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Beschreibung

"This book provides practical tips for family law attorneys, from investigating allegations of parental alienation and domestic violence to admitting expert testimony to aid the court in its fact-finding. Still, the main focus is the law, examining the contexts in which this issue comes up, how courts address the subject across the states and worldwide, the role of a Guardian ad Litem, and the legal interventions available to courts. It is a resource that will make practitioners and court professionals better."
-- Bridget Mary McCormack, Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice

"Joshi focuses on one of the most important issues that our legal system confronts: the rights of children. More broadly, he informs and guides trial lawyers whose cases involve emotion-laden issues, and the need for science-based evidence. That's pretty much all of us."-- Michael E. Tigar, Former ABA Litigation Section Chair

Litigating Parental Alienation provides an in-depth examination of evaluating a case of parental alienation and practical guidance for handling a case in court. An overwhelming number of American family courts have acknowledged that parental alienation exists, although there is significant variance in how the courts have defined it and how they deal with it. As these cases involve not just family law practitioners, this book offers science, case law, and practice pointers for Guardians ad Litem, family court judges, referees, minors' counsel, and custody evaluators.

The first chapter provides both a brief history and overview of the controversies surrounding the phenomenon of parental alienation, providing a starting point for a fundamental understanding of the concept. Author Ashish Joshi distills his experience of litigating parental alienation cases before family courts all over America and internationally. He discusses not just the concepts but also offers "hands on" practice pointers with supporting case law in presenting cases of parental alienation in family courts. The book also discusses the criteria for the admissibility of expert testimony on parental alienation, how to present the expert evidence, as well as a state map of admissibility standards. Finally, the author debunks the commonly-held myths and fallacies that compromise judicial outcomes in parental alienation cases.

Chapters address these critical issues in litigating parental alienation cases:

Court interventions
Expert testimony and presenting a case
The role of guardian ad litem and child representative
Misinformation about parental alienation and how to respond to it
Domestic violence and parental alienation
Defending against false allegations of parental alienation
Tips and guidance for practitioners
Appendices, including cases documenting alienating strategies and signs of alienation in children, state admissibility standards, and statutes and cases regarding minors' counsel

Weitere Details

Weitere Ausgaben

Person

Inhalt

Intro
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Contents
Foreword
Author Bio
Introduction
Chapter 1 Parental Alienation: An Introduction
Parental Alienation: Old Wine in a New Bottle
Alienation versus Estrangement
Parental Alienation versus "Parental Alienation Syndrome"
Parental Alienation and DSM-5
Chapter 2 Admissibility of Expert Testimony on Parental Alienation
Admissibility Standards
Admissibility of Parental Alienation Evidence Under the Frye Test
Admissibility of Parental Alienation under the Daubert Test
The Road Ahead
Chapter 3 Interventions in Parental Alienation Cases
Courts Intervene to Check the Emotional Abuse of Parental Alienation
Recognizing Available Interventions
Early Intervention and Prevention
Traditional Therapy Does Not Work in Resolving Parental Alienation
Reunification, Not Therapy
Specialized Intensive Treatment Programs: The SWAT Teams to Combat Severe Parental Alienation
Separating Children from an Alienating Parent Is Not Traumatic
Modification of the Custodial Environment
Case Examples
Conclusion
Chapter 4 Presenting a Case of Parental Alienation in Court
Expert Testimony: One Tool in the Litigator's Toolbox
Best Interest Factors-Totality of Circumstances
The Five-Factor Model
Factor One: Child Resists a Relationship with a Parent
Factor Two: Prior Positive Relationship with the Rejected Parent
Factor Three: Lack of Abuse by Rejected Parent
Factor Four: The Alienating Behaviors by the Preferred Parent
Factor Five: Children Exhibit Alienation Behaviors
Programming / Brainwashing Techniques Used by Alienating Parents
Single Factor Model versus Multi-Factor Models
Conclusion
Chapter 5 The Role of Guardian ad Litem and Child Representative
GALs and Child Representatives: Experts by Default?
Parental Alienation and the Child's Preference
Parental Alienation, Diminished Capacity, and a Child's Best Interests
Making the "Call": Determining Whether the Child Has Diminished Capacity
Guardians and Immunity
A Suggested Checklist of Best Practices
Chapter 6 Fallacies, False Positives, and Fake News: Misinformation about Parental Alienation
1. Parental Alienation Does Not Exist
2. Parental Alienation Syndrome Is "Junk Science"
3. Parental Alienation Has Been "Debunked"
4. Domestic Violence or Abuse Must Be Ruled Out before Considering Parental Alienation
5. It Is Not Possible to Distinguish Alienation from Estrangement
6. Parental Alienation Cannot Be Diagnosed or Identified Because It Is Not in DSM-5
7. Parental Alienation Is Not Supported by Empirical Research
8. Parental Alienation Does Not Pass the Daubert/Frye Gatekeeping
9. Men Do Not Alienate
Only Women Do (Or Vice Versa)
10. Bad Behavior Equals Parental Alienation: The Risk of False Positives
11. Professional or Clinical Intuition Is Sufficient to Resolve Parental Alienation
Chapter 7 Parental Alienation and Domestic Violence
Applying the Tools: Using the Five-Factor Model to Rule Out Abuse
Counterintuitive Feature of Abused Children: They Want a Relationship with the Abuser
Parental Alienation Is Family Violence
Outcomes of Family Violence
Agenda of the Advocacy Groups
Chapter 8 Parental Alienation Around the World
The Common Law System
The Civil Law System
Conclusion
Chapter 9 Litigating Parental Alienation: Tips for Practitioners
1. One of the oldest heuristics in medicine is primum non nocere: "First, to do no harm."
2. Check for and challenge your biases.
3. Keep yourself abreast of the latest research, publications, and peer-reviewed literature.
4. Frame the case properly.
5. Get ready to debunk the most commonly held fallacy of parental alienation cases-the "high conflict" model.
6. Don't use the term "parental alienation" lightly.
7. Parental alienation cases are "won" (if that's the right word for these heart-wrenching cases) through meticulous and careful preparation.
8. Build a detailed chronology.
9. Learn to manage the clients.
10. Think about using a parenting coach to help the client.
11. Select the right expert.
12. Consider the necessity and helpfulness of a forensic evaluation.
13. Prepare the client for the forensic evaluation.
14. Help the client prepare a package of well-organized documents for the evaluator's review.
15. Counsel the client to follow court orders and show respect towards the court and the legal process.
16. Understand that time is the enemy.
17. Be mindful of the unjust criticism of the judiciary in cases involving parental alienation.
Appendix A Bibliography
Appendix B Examples of Cases Documenting Alienating Strategies
Appendix C Examples of Cases Documenting Signs of Alienation in Children
Appendix D Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Different States
Appendix E Statutes and Cases Regarding Minors' Counsel
Table of Cases
Index

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