1. Frequent emails to the Guardian Ad Litem
Although there is often a lot of information to share with the GAL, it’s important to consolidate your emails into one email a week (max) unless you are responding to a email from the GAL. Frequent unsolicited emails from a parent can come across as a person who has poor impulse control, boundaries and insight into the fact that they have other cases and are often in court. Additionally, it helps to send you emails to your attorney, therapist or family member for editing before sending.
2. Contacting your ex to vent
Despite the fact that until recently you might have been able to tell your spouse how you were feeling, things have just changed dramatically. It may be your action instinct to reach out to this person, as you likely have done for years, but in high conflict cases you need to resist this urge and direct it elsewhere. As the saying goes, this can and may be used against you….to make you look unstable or worse.
3. Inconsistent or chaotic visitations with children
In situations involving supervised visitation, I’ve seen a few cases where a parent’s desire to keep the visitation “fun” translated into chaotic. Routine and consistency are important for kids and visitation is a time to work on spending meaningful time with your children. Additionally, if your visitation is supervised, take into consideration that you want to provide an atmosphere that allows you and your children to be observed with the least amount of distractions.