Counseling in the Family Law System: A Professional Counselor's Guide

This practical career guide is the first book written specifically for professional counselors on how to provide services to the family court system, a growing and lucrative field of practice. Written by a professional counselor with over 20 years of experience, it discusses the roles of counselors in family court and provides step-by-step guidelines on how to expand oneís counseling practice to include family forensic services. It describes how to enter the field, build a successful practice, and how to work effectively with attorneys and judges as well as parents and children. The book provides specific guidelines and examples of how to communicate effectively with attorneys, conduct interviews with parents and children, make recommendations for custody and visitation, write reports, and successfully testify in court. Content builds on the background and expertise already possessed by the professional counselor, and describes the advantages that counselors haveóand challenges they must often overcomeóin successfully practicing in the family law system. Included is a wealth of relevant information about the court system, definitions of legal terms, standards of practice required by the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), training and licensing requirements for evaluators and mediators, scope of practice, and ethical concerns. The book also includes forms for taking interview notes, templates for writing reports, examples of actual reports, sample visitation schedules, and case studies.Key Features: Written specifically for counselors, by an experienced counselor Offers a practical, step-by-step approach for counselors with little legal background Describes how to communicate with attorneys and conduct interviews with parents and children, including dos and doníts Includes templates for conducting interviews, writing reports, visitation/parenting plans, sample reports, and case examples Examines myths and misunderstandings regarding forensic family practice

About the Author

Virginia B. Allen, EdD, is Professor, Department of Counseling, Kasiska College of Health Professions, Idaho State University. She has been a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in the state of Idaho for 28 years and has worked in private practice as a Custody Evaluator for the Magistrate Courts in Idaho for 20 of those years.