Parental Alienation
Parental Alienation--pitting your child against the other parent
Parental alienation – a hot topic in family law across the nation - is defined as a systematic alienation of a child from one parent, purposely caused by the other parent. A poisoning, if you will, of the child against a parent because of the words and actions of the other.
More and more, courts are being called on to review custody and visitation arrangements based on claims of parental alienation. In Mississippi, it is very unusual for primary physical custody to be modified based on interference with custody or visitation alone. Unusual but not impossible, especially when programmed parental alienation can be proved.
Generally, the chancery court is supposed to enforce visitation through contempt orders (and sometimes incarceration following a finding of contempt). In some very extraordinary cases though, the interference with the non-custodial parent’s relationship with the child is so severe that it constitutes a material change in circumstances to support a change in custody. The court would also have to find an adverse effect on the child and determine that the change was in the best interests of the child.
The 14 factors used to determine what is in the "best interests" of a child with
regard to custody in Mississippi are often referred to as the Albright factors and were discussed in a previous post on this site. See Child Custody (Part II): What factors are used in determining child custody in Mississippi?
In the few Mississippi cases in which custody was changed as a result of parental alienation, the courts made findings that the parental alienation was severe and longstanding, that the non-custodial parent had better parenting skills and that the child had unhealthy emotional ties to the custodial parent.
If you are experiencing problems with custodial interference or parental alienation, you should discuss your legal options with an attorney.
