Parenting coordination is a client-pay, hybrid alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process designed for parents and guardians involved in on-going, high conflict custody disputes. Although this practice has been known by different names in different states, “Special Master” in California, “Wiseperson” in New Mexico, “Custody Commissioner” in Hawaii, and “Family Court Advisor” in Arizona, all of these designations refer to a child-focused ADR process in which a mental health or legal professional with mediation training and experience assists high conflict families to implement their custody order. The basic idea underlying the parenting coordination process is that a parenting coordinator (PC) can act more quickly than court processes and with more authority than a mediator to resolve the seemingly continuous series of issues arising between high conflict parents. This is the result of the range and combination of roles and skills PCs are expected to have including education, assessment, mediation, and decision-making (AFCC, 2003). Practitioners of parenting coordinator have been the most vocal proponents of the practice and the most responsible for existing ethical guidelines through writing about their own experiences and proposing best practice models to deal with the difficult situations of these clients (Coates, et al. 2004; Boyan, & Termini, 2004; Garrity & Baris, 1994).
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