A conversation for professionals and for parents interested in contributing to Solutions.
Solutions related to child custody disputes -including policy revisions & upholding fiduciary duty:
We hear that the Court is supposed to help parents arrive at something that is “in the best interests of the children” but that often is miscontrued.
It is most often just a notion that sounds good on paper or rolling off the tongue of a member of the Court. It causes GOOD parents to assume that there is really nothing to worry about, that surely the Court will see the obvious…and the evidence…and allow them to continue serving their children well.
Sadly that is a myth. Actually it is more of a Trap than a myth. Myths usually do not cause real, lasting harm. A trap is something you are not meant to get out of. Not in one piece anyway.
Disclaimer: When we at M-A-C say, “Good parents” and “best interests” that can be applied to mean either Mother or Father; this is not a gender issue. Remove bias & restore accountability for Fiduciaries, ensure that laws & guidelines have ‘teeth’ and we can make rewarding progress. For all parents.
Progress means getting rid of what merely sounds good, or lip service, and doing the hard work of helping parents resolve conflict, and getting help with dysfunctional behavior that led to the divorce or custody dispute.
That statement is a big part of the solution: proper counseling.
We have, at least in Georgia, some incredibly talented and effective healthcare and law enforcement professionals who are capable of amending and improving relationships between “high-conflict” parties.
These are resources that go largely untapped due to how the legal process is manipulated and controlled by a few who are not focused on “doing the right thing” — simply because it is assumed that it is harder work for less profit. For certain Fiduciaries managing these cases, that is.
If you know how to identify legal professionals who will uphold Fiduciary Duty and apply their talent and experience to reach the best outcome for the family, then you have the best of all worlds: the best legal minds doing legal work, the appropriate psychological or healthcare providers, along with law enforcement where called for.
So our mandate is to shift the focus to be: “Your bottom line as a professional improves as you Do the Right Thing, and uplift the Real Needs of Children and good parents.” The guidelines and protocols are there to follow, which demands proper counseling — and parents are asking for it, children need it desperately, and it just isn’t that hard.
“Good parents” do not destroy children by undermining their needs just to get at, restrict or punish the other parent. Period. You don’t “split the baby up the middle” – you straigten out the parent willing to use the child as a pawn or weapon.
What currently exists in Family Law matters is something that is less about reality, or the REAL needs of children and parents, and more about doing favors and manipulating parties and litigation tactics to wear one party down, increase profits for the professionals, and reach an outcome that rewards the other party for being abusive. That hurts good parents – no matter whether the “caregiver” and nurturing parent is the mother or father – and especially hurts the children. Everyone who is owed a duty of loyalty and honesty here LOSES. Unless they know how to prepare and avoid the traps…
Children & parents who have experienced trauma are counting on us.
We are determined that “Divided Families do not have to become Destroyed Families” as we are seeing in the current standard being set by certain practitioners of law.
WE CAN SAY THIS FIRMLY BASED ON CASE STUDIES WHICH WE WILL BE PUBLISHING SOON.
If you would like to receive white papers and case studies – or briefs related to cases involving misconduct – then fill out our contact form on www.MyAdvocateCenter.com.
You can also follow us on http://www.linkedin.com/company/my-advocate-center-llc. If you decide to engage and contribute on this topic, joining the M-A-C Counsel for Change on LinkedIn may be your next natural step.
Simple ways to see our updates and excerpts of cases studies: Facebook.com/MyAdvocateCenter — @MyAdvocateCentr on Twitter
Most people agree, parent or not, professional or not, that children deserve the best that BOTH parents have to offer, right? Sounds better than the “best interests of children…” whatever that might turn out to mean to someone focused more on profit than on helping children.
Children cannot get the best of both parents when both parents are left in a worsened state, often both emotionally and financially, and even physcially if home loss or medical conditions/illness result.
Children – tens of thousands of children each year – are experiencing more violence, addictive behavior, stress and uncertainty, as well as critical time with parents being lost…all due to an intentionally escalated and prolonged process. More children turn to unhealthy coping skills as they react.
Want to interrupt cycles of violence and addiction? Address what is happening in throes of legal battles.
Why is there so much trauma? It can be due to the improper handling of Domestic Violence issues, or the loss of parenting rights, financial resources and homes, and sometimes due merely to the lack of honesty and loyalty from counsel. All of these things destabilize parents and exacerbate anger, confusion, depression, anxiety…and all of this is absorbed by the children watching their parents and getting caught in the middle.
Who is watching these children to see what the effects on them are?
Teachers, healthcare workers, school directors, neighbors, family members and too often law enforcement as the dysfunction leads to juvenile delinquency. But these people are not involved in the legal process and have no control over curbing the manipulation that is worsening the situation. They feel their hands are tied.
Know that our perspective & value come from the collective strengths of many who have experienced loss due to breakdowns in communication, transparency & accountability around this legal process governing the division of children and other “property.”
What can you do?
Join us in contributing to the conversation about raising standards to mean something for children around how these cases are handled and governed, and do what you can to strengthen a parent who may be vulnerable in a “high conflict” legal matter or co-parenting.
Empower someone who needs to know how to better prepare and manage, and confront and hold accountable one willing to do harm.
Please spread the word that if someone is exploiting another who is in need of help and protection, and/or is disabled from PTSD or other qualified disability under the ADA, that ability to profit from their weakness is coming to an end.
