I recently had an interesting discussion at one of the courthouses about Parental Alienation. The issue for the moment was whether PA was considered “real” from a clinical point of view, and whether the DSM had a diagnostic category for Parental Alienation.  As any reader of Illinois Divorce Lawyer Blog knows, PA is real, and I have spent many years working with and managing PA cases for my clients, along with being involved in research and professional groups associated with PA from both a legal and clinical standpoint.

As these matters go, the discussion was spirited, and my mind went to the efforts of those like Dr. Bernet and Amy Baker, who made efforts to include diagnostic codes for PA in the newest DSM updates.  Here is a summary, below:

PA  :  It is a term used by mental health and legal professionals to describe both a complex form of child psychological abuse (i.e., isolating, exploiting/corrupting, terrorizing) and a diagnostic label for identifying a pathologically disturbed parent-child relationship between an alienating parent and a child victim.
Michael Roe

Michael Roe is one of the few lawyers nationwide with experience in high conflict divorce and custody cases involving psychological disorders. His experience has been detailed in the Chicago Tribune, New York Post, and on television and radio. He has been a

Michael Roe is one of the few lawyers nationwide with experience in high conflict divorce and custody cases involving psychological disorders. His experience has been detailed in the Chicago Tribune, New York Post, and on television and radio. He has been a founder of a personality disorders nonprofit, and a director of a national single parent’s organization. Michael Roe has a unique, informed, and sensitive approach to complex issues raised in contested Family Law cases.