Following years of the mother’s outrageous behaviour which “demonised” her ex in the eyes of their children, the father has now sadly given up his eight-year fight to see his children.  Recognising that the case had been “heart-breaking and expensive”, the judge said the father was “an intelligent man, who plainly loves his children” and blamed the mother for the alienation.

Judge Stephen Wildblood, the most senior family judge in Bristol, said that there was no professional suggestion that the father should not have contact with the children, indeed throughout the eight-year history of the case, there had been several recommendations from various professionals that contact with the father should take place.  The judge said that all professional opinion taken was that the mother had alienated the children from their father, such that they will no longer have anything to do with him or his family. The children do not acknowledge cards or letters and even have ‘false memories’ of how their father had behaved towards them.

Saying that the alienation lay “squarely” with the mother, Judge Wildblood said that the children would suffer “significant and long-term harm” as a result of her bitterness.  He said that as an adult and a parent with parental responsibility, she should act in the best interests of the children and that includes promoting a relationship with both parents, which she had not done.

Our solicitor, Nicola Cancellara, has previously written about parental alienation in her article about bad-mouthing your ex.  In it, she talks of a court in Italy that fined a mother 30,000 euros for bad-mouthing her partner.  Nicola also gives a link to an article that appeared in the Telegraph in which the chief executive of CAFCASS suggested that parental alienation should be treated as child abuse or neglect.  This particular case is a very sad one that highlights just how dangerous parental alienation can be.  Maybe it will be a catalyst for change in the UK.

Author: Nicola Cancellara family solicitor.