To begin with, what is meant by ‘parental alienation’? Parental alienation as used in family court is a specific term of art that encompasses a broad array of behaviour of one parent or the other aimed at disrupting, or interfering with the relationship of the child or children with the other parent. It often manifests as a series of orchestrated behaviour usually over a prolonged period of time aimed at estranging the chid or children from the other parent. Although parental alienation is not presently specifically defined by the California Family Code, the family court has codified by statute broad language to provide a framework whereby coparenting and involvement of both parents in the lives of the chid or children is encouraged, and behaviour that could ultimately be defined as parental alienation is discouraged. The overall aim of the family court with regards to children is to ensure orders that are in the children’s best interests and, in the absence of any facts or circumstances that would speak otherwise, orders that foster frequent and continuing contact with both parents are presumed to be in the best interests of the child or children. How does this behaviour often manifest during separation or divorce? In any separation or divorce matter involving children who are minors, it will be necessary for the parents (either on their own or with the assistance of the court) to come up with a parenting plan that defines the framework for everything from legal custody to the specifics of the time-share arrangement between the parents (often referred to as physical custody). It is often in attempting to establish a parenting plan that parental alienation – when it occurs – can begin to be observed. There is a multitude of ways that parental alienation manifests itself in every case. Commonalities, however, often involve continuous negative comments by the alienating parent about the other parent to the child, attempting to convince the child or others that the other parent may be unfit or in some cases potentially harmful to the child or children, frequent cancellation of custodial time, and even using the scheduling of extracurricular activities for the child that directly conflict with and interfere with the other parent’s custodial time. There are really endless iterations of how parental alienation can manifest, but they tend to function to support the goal of disrupting the relationship and bond between the alienated parent and child. In what ways can this be harmful to a child? Unfortunately, the negative impacts of parental alienation on a child are often severe. Separation or divorce is always a difficult time for the children involved, and it is often that time when the children need both of their parents the most. It is not uncommon for children in separation or divorce matters to feel in some way responsible. When the bond between the alienated parent and the child is disrupted, the children who are usually already struggling with the separation or divorce often express feelings of low self-esteem, low selfconfidence, anxiety and depression. In some cases children develop lasting problems with trust and relationshipbuilding well into their adult lives. It is often in attempting to establish a parenting plan that parental alienation – when it occurs – can begin to be observed. 16 LAWYER MONTHLY APRIL 2023
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