Your child turns twelve; they don't want to go to the abusive parent's house for half of the summer holidays; they start to resist contact. You face a dilemma; you are court-ordered to send them. You know if you complain to the court the judge will think you are bitter and trying to prevent contact.
Read moreFamily Court: The 5 Mistakes That Will Come Back to Haunt the Narcissistic Parent
The narcissist will use any given opportunity to extract an emotional reaction from you, the healthy parent. The narcissist knows the child is your Achilles heel and will happily use the child as a pawn to bait and torment you.
When the narcissistic parent prevents contact, doesn't allow the child to message you during their parenting time, or stands in the background of Facetime or Skype calls, it causes trauma to their child.
Read moreIntractable Contact Disputes and Domestic Abuse: What Judges Need to Understand
In Intractable contact disputes (high conflict), the judge has a difficult decision to make, and one in which they shall seek expert advice to assist them. The Family Court and professionals involved can benefit from a deeper understanding of the changing behaviours in our society and how to recognise them in difficult cases; what appears to be an intractable contact dispute may in fact be a domestic abuse (risk) case; a good understanding of coercive control is required to make a contact decision which keeps the child safe from harm.
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