“Forensically-informed” is a term thrown around a lot in family court. Orders will sometimes specify that a person (or child) must see a forensically-informed therapist, which significantly narrows the range of options for therapy. Unfortunately, very few forensically-informed therapists take insurance, as court-ordered therapy will rarely have the treatment codes necessary for insurance submission.
What does it mean if you (or your child) is ordered or recommended to have forensically-informed therapy? It definitely doesn’t mean you’ve done anything wrong or that something is wrong with you. In its most simple definition, forensically-informed means “related to or knowledgeable about court proceedings.” In 2023, I did a blog post about a situation where a non-forensically informed therapist did a great deal of damage in a family law case, apparently because this professional did not act in ways that recognize that litigation and family court proceedings create very different family dynamics than those that exist in an intact family. The non-forensically informed therapist in that case simply didn’t try to get all the information which was needed to properly treat the child/ patient.
A forensically-informed therapist in a family case will, in general, know the following important things:
-information from both parents is vital in order to treat the family systems issues or treat the child; relying on information from only one source or one parent is dangerous.
-making recommendations about parenting time or child placement is inappropriate (and probably unethical) unless the therapist has done a full custody or family evaluation.
-while support for the patient in therapy is crucial, the patient’s disordered or harmful behaviors may need to be challenged in order to achieve change.
-simply agreeing with and supporting a parent/ patient’s perspectives, rather than educating the parent in family systems and challenging beliefs, will often not best serve the patient and the family.
Forensically-informed clinicians know that they will occasionally need to report to the court (or counsel for the parties) about certain aspects of the therapeutic process, without revealing patient confidences. That reporting can be done through treatment plans that outline the objectives of treatment and steps taken; reporting to other professionals the frequency and consistency of treatment; reporting to other professionals if there is resistance to or noncompliance with treatment; recommending other ancillary recommendations such as parent education or testing.
One of the most beneficial aspects of forensically-informed therapists is the ability to speak with other professionals in the case, including therapists treating other family members, a custody evaluator, and/ or a parenting coordinator. By speaking with therapists for other family members, a treating therapist gets valuable information that may not be forthcoming from the patient himself or herself. By speaking with a parenting coordinator, the therapist can learn of court orders and court proceedings that might affect the course of therapy or cause particular concern or trauma that needs to be dealt with. Collaboration between professionals is a crucial part of therapeutic work done in a family court context.
This article from the Maricopa County Bar Association newsletter (December 2024) discusses how the court and professionals can work together in one aspect of forensically-informed therapist, which is the reunification process.