Parental Alienation Solicitors

Parental alienation is when a child’s resistance or hostility towards one parent is not justified and is the result of psychological manipulation by the other parent. The process of manipulation need not be malicious or deliberate, but is the end result when combining a parent’s behaviour and a child’s reaction.

Identifying features include:

• A child’s rejection of one parent and alliance with the other parent
• Pressure placed upon the child by its’ primary carer, which amounts to coercive, controlling behaviours.
• The reaction and behaviours of a child, which can include fear of the other parent, hostility, disrespect and ultimately rejection of the other parent.

Specialist parental alienation solicitors

Our family law specialists are adept at recognising when Parental Alienation is an issue and assisting our clients in navigating difficult circumstances. We are sensitive to the pressures you face as a parent and always mindful of the impact of our actions on your children.

When making decisions about who a child lives with, or spends time with, the court’s paramount consideration is a child’s welfare. In circumstances where parental alienation is happening, the court can order a transfer of residence of a child to the other parent if it considers this is in the child’s best interests when weighing up the welfare considerations. Delay in taking steps to understand the family dynamic and constructively tackle barriers to contact can make the situation very difficult to change.

The court must at an early stage be alert to parental alienation. There is however a distinction to be drawn between a child’s own feelings when there is hostility between their parents on relationship breakdown, and an emotionally abusive process.