Planning for Parenting Time: Ohio's Guide for Parents Living Apart

Professional Services for Parents and Children
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES FOR PARENTS & CHILDREN
Given the differing circumstances of each family, courts use a variety of community professionals to help.
Some of the services offered by mental health experts are outlined below. The use of such professionals
does not mean a family member suffers from a mental disorder. Helping to identify problems that can
affect your children and getting the right person to help starts when you know the different types of
services and can request the ones best suited to your family.
DISPUTE RESOLUTION (DR): SOLVE IT WITHOUT A JUDGE
Collaborative Divorce
Coaching and
Consulting
Mediation
Parenting Coordinator
Team approach to divorce involving the parents, their attorneys, financial
analysts, consultants and others who provide information and education
to help resolve parental disputes without court involvement.
Uses a variety of negotiation tools and strategies to assist parents to reach
agreement about all aspects of child decision-making and parenting time
schedules.
Case management, dispute resolution process using mediation and
arbitration concepts to help implement parenting court orders. Inquire in
your local court to see if these services are available.
ASSESSMENT: PROVIDING INFORMATION TO THE JUDGE
Brief Custody
Evaluation
Child Custody
Evaluation
Child Forensic
Interview
Neuropsychological
Evaluation
Less comprehensive evaluation focused on addressing specific issues or
updating an already-existing parenting court order.
Comprehensive fact-finding process resulting in extensive decision-making
and parenting time recommendations. Especially helpful where there are
high-conflict parental relationships, relocation issues or allegations of
sexual abuse, child abuse or domestic violence.
Specialized interview of a child to answer specific questions for the court
without involving the child directly in the legal system.
A process by a medical professional to determine if a person has a physical
brain injury that significantly disrupts the person’s life, typically manifested
by “short fuse” violence and post-traumatic stress disorder.
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