Can Parental Alienation Impact Child Custody?

In your insightful opinion as a first-hand witness, you may not have thought your former spouse was a great parental figure to your child during your marriage. You even go as far as accusing them of alienating your child at certain points. This is why you may be shocked when, during your divorce proceedings, you find your former spouse fighting for significant custodial rights. Unfortunately, we hear about, witness, and handle cases like this play out all the time. Well, please read on to discover how parental alienation can impact a child custody order and how one of the seasoned Somerset County child custody lawyers at the Law Offices of Kisha M. Hebbon, LLC can fight on your behalf with your child’s best interest in mind.

What are examples of parental alienation?

In the study of psychology, parental alienation is considered to be when a child is manipulated by one of their parents into diminishing their relationship with their other parent. Without further ado, below are examples of parental alienation:

• A parent makes their child feel guilty for spending time with the other parent.
• A parent openly speaks poorly about their child’s other parent in front of or to them.
• A parent removes photos or keepsakes of the child’s other parent from their living space.
• A parent may limit contact between their child and the other parent and lie about their availability.

How can parental alienation impact a child custody order?

Sadly, parental alienation cases are most often seen amid divorce proceedings and child custody battles. This is in a distorted effort to get a child to express their preference to live with one parent over the other, especially if the New Jersey family judge deems them mature enough to have a say in the matter.

Your former spouse may have exhibited such manipulative behavior throughout your marriage. So you may see right through their efforts to alienate your child at this pivotal time. But your job is to have the judge see your point of view. This may be accomplished by taking the following actions in your custody case proceedings:

• You may have your close friends, family members, and adult children testify on your former spouse’s alienating behavior.
• You may have your child’s mental healthcare provider offer professional testimony on your child’s emotional changes since your split.
• You may supply communications your former spouse has shared with you, your child, and online that exhibit their alienating behavior.

If you are looking for someone to legally represent you in your upcoming child custody case proceedings, please look no further than one of the competent Somerset County family lawyers. Our team at the Law Office of Kisha M. Hebbon, LLC will do everything in our power to get the best possible outcome for you and your child.