Parental Alienation Syndrome

Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) Lawyer

Has your spouse turned your child against you? Does your child, with whom you once shared a loving bond, now reject you, want to spend less time with you, or claim to hate you? Your child may be suffering from Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS). Dr. Richard Gardner identified PAS as a syndrome in 1985 and has written extensively on the subject, which was once referred to simply as brainwashing. If the court finds that PAS exists, it may order a radical shift of child custody or visitation.

A child with PAS may show some or all of the following behaviors:

• Campaign of Denigration: The child is aligned with the alienating parent in a campaign of denigration against the target parent, with the child making active contributions.
• Weak, Frivolous, or Absurd Rationalizations are given for deprecating the target parent. For example, "He chews too loudly," or "She is the devil's spawn."
• Lack of Ambivalence: Animosity toward the rejected parent lacks the ambivalence normal to human relationships. It is unmitigated, full-on hatred.
• The Independent Thinker Phenomenon: The child says the decision to reject the target parent is his or her own, not based on another's suggestion.
• Unquestioning Support: The child reflexively supports the parent with whom he or she is aligned.
• Absence of Guilt: The child expresses guiltless disregard for the feelings of the target or hated parent.
• Borrowed Scenarios: The child's statements reflect themes and terminology of the alienating parent, or focus on events that happened before the child's birth.
• Animosity is Spread: The extended family and others associated with the hated parent are included in the campaign of animosity.

If your children have been turned against you in a manner that is so severe they see their other parent as all good and you as all bad, consult a qualified fathers' rights attorney at DADSLAW, INC. We will review your legal options and fight to uphold your rights to child custody and visitation. For more information, please contact our law firm today.