The topic of this conference is intended to raise consciousness among all practitioners (GAL’s, PC’s, attorneys, therapists) who work with high conflict families. The focus is on the ways in which they, in the context of the adversarial process, exercise their roles in ways they consider helpful and ethical. However, from a systemic perspective, in the performance of those roles, they may exacerbate the conflict in the situation and work against a resolution that best serves families’ (and in particular, children’s) needs. The conference will begin with a keynote address that lays a framework for how the adversarial process evokes biases that tend to exacerbate conflict. This will be followed by a multi-disciplinary panel (judges, mental health provider, attorneys) who will discuss a complex hypothetical fact pattern.

Hosted by Massachusetts Chapter - Association of Family and Conciliation Courts online for 4 CEs. For more info, visit www.maafcc.org/events---conferences.html.