How can you document suspected parental alienation?

If you have a joint-custody arrangement, you expect your co-parent to respect your parental authority. You also do not want him or her badmouthing you to your children. Sadly, though, too many co-parents treat their counterparts poorly.

According to Psychology Today, parental alienation is a serious type of child abuse. With parental alienation, which can be intentional or inadvertent, one co-parent turns the kids against the other. If your co-parent is undermining the good relationship you have with your kids, you need evidence of his or her bad behavior.

Effective documentation

Mere assertions of parental alienation are not likely to do you or your kids much good. Indeed, to pursue a custody modification or take other steps, you must be able to prove your spouse’s conduct is harming your kids.

The following types of documentation may be useful:

• Text messages, voicemails, letters and other correspondence between your kids and their co-parent or you and your co-parent
• Statements from your children
• Statements from your children’s teachers, social group leaders, clergy and friends
• Evaluations from social workers and child psychologists

Legal action

As you probably know by now, New York judges must think about the children’s best interests when they make custody-associated decisions. It should come as no surprise, however, that judges do not like parental alienation. Put simply, if you have sufficient documentation of it, you may be able to convince a judge to take a second look at your custody arrangement.

Ultimately, because parental alienation can forever ruin your parent-child relationships unbelievably quickly, gathering evidence and protecting your parental rights must be your top priorities.