What we Provide
Forensic Evaluations & Consulting
Specializing in forensic family law evaluations and consulting for high conflict families in the Florida Courts. Heather has extensive experience navigating the family law court system advocating for minor children both as an evaluator and as an expert witness.
Social Investigations
More commonly referred to as Custody Evaluations
Social Investigations are often used when more extensive information is needed about children and parents involved in high-conflict cases and when the issues of time-sharing and parental responsibility are in dispute. They are a process by which an impartial professional completes an investigation and makes recommendations to the court regarding the best interest of the child(ren). The investigation typically includes interviews of the parents and children, interviews with collateral sources, home visits, and a records review, culminating in a formal report with recommendations to the court.
Guardian ad litem
A Guardian ad Litem is a court-appointed special advocate that helps the voices of children involved in judicial proceedings be heard. These children may be abused, neglected, abandoned, or embroiled in their parents’ ongoing litigation. The GAL is a neutral third party who represents the child(ren) and their best interests in Court, and independently conducts a thorough investigation on behalf of the child. Recommendations are made based on what is best for the child(ren) in order to help ensure that each child’s physical safety, psychological health, and emotional well-being are properly protected.
Consulting for Coparenting
Co-parent consulting can help divorced, divorcing, and never-married parents identify current problems, stressors, and challenges the family faces and provide the parents with strategic solutions to everyday problems. This self-referred, collaborative, and proactive process is not court-ordered Parenting Coordination.
Co-parenting is essential to creating stable and healthy environments for your children’s overall psychological development and physical growth within two households. When there is a lack of unity between parenting styles, it can become confusing for the children to operate at their best. Due to the complexity of the co-parenting dynamic, parents may face challenges where they disagree on what’s best for their children or struggle to meet their children’s needs. Consequently, parents may resort to parallel parenting or high-conflict co-parenting, which results in utilizing the legal system as the default mechanism for problem-solving.
Consulting for Mental Health Professionals
Consultation for other mental health providers who may find themselves in the role of the therapist for a client involved in legal proceedings in the family court system. Although many mental health providers seek to avoid being brought into legal matters, it is often unavoidable throughout your professional career, especially if you work with minor children in high-conflict families. Consultation can help providers navigate this unique dynamic and bridge the gap of knowledge between the two fields so that you can appropriately advocate for yourself and your client(s).
- Case Consultation
- Updating your practice policies, fees, and paperwork
- Writing & editing summaries of treatment for legal purposes
- Navigating the intersection of laws & your professional ethics
- Understanding how and when to respond to subpoenas and court orders
- Preparation for court appearances
Getting Started
Forensic evaluations cannot be scheduled online.
At this time, all social investigations and Guardians ad litem work must be court-ordered in the 3rd, 4th, and 8th Florida Circuits only.
Co-Parenting Consulting & Consulting for Clinicians is available via telehealth across Florida.
Please e-mail us regarding availability to take new cases, court order language, and instructions for serving court-related documents to ensure proper receipt.
Current Fees & Retainer for Social Investigations & Guardian Ad Litem
$250/hour with a $5,000 retainer
Consulting for Co-Parents
$200 for 60 min sessions
Consulting for Clinicians
$100 for providers who are students, interns, and/or from marginalized populations
$150 for fully licensed providers