Conflict between two parents can be extremely stressful and even detrimental to children. Counseling that helps the parents cooperatively resolve conflict has many benefits over utilizing the court system. In a court case, the judge will have limited knowledge of the parents and the needs of their children. The reality of litigation is that there are too many cases for each family to be truly individually addressed. The court system is not equipped to handle it. What results is often an "averaged" or "cookie cutter" solution/resolution to the conflict. The court is forced to make orders that work well for most parents who can not resolve their disputes relating to their children.
By cooperating and resolving conflicts by agreement, the parents have much more flexibility to craft a solution that actually addresses their and their children's real needs. Moreover, parents developing the ability to amicably communicate with each other is a huge benefit to the children. Imagine a child's graduation where the parents are so hostile they can not even sit together to honor their child's accomplishments. Imagine the stress this places on the child, being caught in the middle of a very emotional tug of war. The scenarios where children benefit from their parents' ability to get along are almost countless.
As a result, effective counseling that assists the parents in working amicably and cooperatively with each other is a highly valuable service. Not only for the sake of the children, but also from a financial standpoint. Resolving conflicts in court is an expensive approach.
If you would like a referral to a counselor with expertise in your particular area of counseling needs, please contact us. We are happy to pass up your litigation business, if instead you can achieve a better result for your children through counseling.