Posts Tagged ‘parental alienation’
NEW FREE e-learning Course called, Parent-Child-Contact-Problem (Alienation)
We are excited to share our NEW e-learning Course, Parent-Child-Contact-Problem (Alienation)! This new course is available for FREE on our training website. This free e-learning, presented by Pamela Cross and Peter Jaffe, is designed for lawyers and other professionals involved with the family court system who may be interested in learning more about this important issue. Course learning…
Read moreCase summary: Parental alienation and reunification therapy
This case summary was prepared by Pamela Cross. In this case, Justice Sullivan comprehensively reviewed the evidence, law and case law in making an order that the 14-year-old son be required to participate in reunification therapy, against his wishes, largely because she believed the father had influenced the child to such an extent that his…
Read moreParental alienation, family violence and family law: Part two
In her 2023 report entitled, “Custody, violence against women and violence against children”, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women and Girls, Reem Aslalem, describes parental alienation as a “discredited and unscientific pseudo-concept” that serves as a tool for abusers “to continue their abuse and coercion and to undermine and discredit allegations of domestic violence…
Read moreParental alienation, family violence and family law: Part one
The terms parental alienation syndrome (PAS) and its more recent iteration, parental alienation (PA), have been creating challenges in family law cases involving parenting claims since at least the 1990s. Initially proposed by American psychologist Richard Gardner, PAS was his response to what he claimed were false allegations of child sexual abuse brought by mothers…
Read moreAddressing the issue of parental alienation
What is parental alienation? Parental alienation (PA) has been a challenging issue for decades for many women leaving abusive partners. In recent years, the use of PA claims has risen. A common claim by an abusive partner is that the mother is intentionally alienating the children from him when, in fact, she is engaging in…
Read moreAllegations of Parental Alienation and Family Violence
The following blog post was written by Ibukun Ogunfuwa[1] and Joanna Harris[2] Allegations of parental alienation can significantly impact cases involving family violence. It can be a very challenging and emotionally distressing situation for all involved, particularly the accused parent. The term parental alienation was first coined by Richard Gardner in the mid-1980s, in response…
Read moreCase law: Family reunification therapy and claims of parental alienation
Barrett v. Huver, 2018 ONSC 2322: In this case, the father brought a motion for an order requiring the parents and children to attend multi-day family reunification therapy. The parties were married in July 2001 and separated in April 2009. They had two children, born in 2003 and 2005. In 2012, the mother was granted…
Read moreAlienating children or protecting them?
In the late 1980s, a new phrase started to pop up in American and then Canadian family courts: parental alienation syndrome (PAS). Originally coined by American psychiatrist Richard Gardner, the term was used to describe situations where one parent intentionally interfered with the children’s relationships with the other. (It might be more accurate to say…
Read moreHow can a woman support her kids during and after her family law case?
The more a woman can protect her children from the negative emotions she may be feeling towards and about her former partner, the better for them. Negative feelings towards her former partner Her fear of her former partner may be justified but, unless she has fears for the children’s safety when they are with him,…
Read moreRecent case: Parental alienation
L.(N.) v M. (R.R.) 2016 ONSC 809: In this case, the police refused to enforce a court order to deliver a child, now over the age of 16, to his father, when the child was refusing to have contact with the father. The Chief of Police was made a party to the motion. In coming…
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