The child custody order that’s in place will dictate what your time and relationship with your child looks like. So, if the order in question is creating a rift between you and your child, then you might want to consider seeking a modification. This is especially true when you suspect that parental alienation is occurring.
This process, whereby a child is manipulated to distance them from their other parent, can be extremely harmful to your child, essentially removing you from their life. Dealing with parental alienation can be incredibly stressful, and you might be left feeling like there’s no way to put it to a stop, but the good news is that you can fight against it. Also, courts are becoming more receptive to arguments pertaining to parental alienation, giving you an opportunity to successfully raise the issue and modify an existing custody order.
How can you prove parental alienation?
In years past, parental alienation has been difficult to prove. But there are some sound strategies that you can develop to persuade a judge to rule in your favor on this issue. Here are some steps you can take to build your parental alienation case:
- Document everything: If parental alienation is in play, then your child is probably acting out against you and making disparaging remarks toward you. Also, the other parent may be blocking your access to your child. Be sure to document all this so that you create a running history of how you’ve been cut out of taking on a meaningful role in your child’s life and can more easily demonstrate a pattern of behavior indicative of parental alienation.
- Gather social media evidence: One way parental alienation occurs is by disparaging the other parent online in a forum that’s accessible to the child. If you’re slandered on social media, then you should print out the remarks that’ve been made against you so that you can present them in court. This can be compelling evidence of how the other parent feels about you and unfairly treats you.
- Depose the child’s other parent: By deposing the other parent, you lock them into their account of events, which gives you a strong opportunity to point out their inconsistencies and lies. This can damage their reliability when they testify in court, thereby giving you an opportunity to argue for the custody arrangement that you think is best for your child.
- Ask for a guardian ad litem or a custody evaluation: The court might struggle to figure out what sort of custody arrangement is in the child’s best interests. But the court can appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child’s best interests, or order that a custody evaluation be conducted to give the court an unbiased perspective on what arrangement is best.
Protect your child from the effects of parental alienation
Your child’s well-being is at substantial risk when they’re caught in the middle of parental alienation. It very well may be the case that only you can protect them. So, start gathering evidence, follow the tips mentioned above, and carefully think through what you can do successfully address parental alienation. You might be surprised by your ability to do so in an amicable fashion. And, if you’re successful, then you might obtain the custody order needed to keep your child safe and protect your relationship with them.