Child custody disputes can quickly become heated. If yours does, then you could find yourself on the receiving end of parental alienation accusations. Parental alienation is the process of manipulating a child to distance them from their other parent, usually in hopes of securing a more favorable custody arrangement. Parental alienation can run the spectrum of severity, too, including everything from withholding the other parent’s access to the child to abuse or neglect.
If you’ve been accused of parental alienation, then you need to be prepared to fight back. After all, courts have become more receptive to these arguments, which means if you’re ill-prepared, then you might see the court issue a custody order that’s harmful to you, your child and your relationship with your child. With that in mind, here are some ways you may be able to counter assertions of parental alienation:
- Gather evidence that contradicts the other parent’s assertions, whether other witness accounts or documentation of the events at hand.