Parental Alienation Syndrome
and California Family Law Courts
There is still a great deal of debate nationally and in the California family court system about whether parental alienation syndrome (PAS) is a legitimate issue judges should be concerned with — or whether it’s nothing more than junk science that can be used to strip any alleged abuser of their rights to custody or even visitation.
One thing that is clear is this: Anyone who feels they’ve been alienated from their children by a former spouse and who has had this allegation levied against them needs an experienced attorney who’s been paying attention to the legal developments on this topic.
At Holstrom, Sissung, Marks & Anderson, we provide experienced, aggressive representation to people throughout Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties who are faced with this issue. For a free consultation with one of our lawyers — call any of our three office locations or, contact us online.
What Qualifies as Parental Alienation?
First, the psychological diagnosis of parental alienation syndrome goes far beyond one parent simply disparaging or hurling insults directed at the other parent through the children. Some have even suggested that it’s the family-unfriendly version of Stockholm Syndrome — an infamous diagnosis forever linked to the defense of newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst in the 1970s.
How is PAS supposed to affect children? Parental alienation syndrome is usually raised in cases where domestic violence and allegations of domestic violence are a part of the story — the idea being that children, after living with a domestic abuser for a long enough period of time, begin to identify and sympathize not with the more protective parent but with the abuser instead.
That said — PAS is also known to have occurred in cases where no abuse took place but where one parent had unusually hostile feelings toward the other.
In any case, it is important to remember that one of the major factors courts look at in deciding child custody is each parent’s ability to foster a meaningful relationship between their children and the non-custodial parent.
To learn more about this issue or your rights as a parent — call any one of our office locations directly or contact us online.
Free Telephone Consultations / Major Credit Cards Accepted
Orange County: (714) 408-7290 / (866) 586-8231
Riverside County: (951) 817-7665 / (866) 930-1949
San Bernardino County: (909) 327-2065 / (866) 331-9473
