Parent Coordination Reauthorized in Commonwealth

On August 9, 2018, the PA Supreme Court ordered that Rule 1915.11-1 of the PA Rules of Civil Procedure be amended to include Parenting Coordination. The amended rule  will go into effect as of March 1, 2019. The rule provides that to qualify for court appointments, Parenting Coordinators must be "licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania either as an attorney or a mental health professional with a masters degree or higher" and have completed specialized training that includes five hours of parenting coordination process; ten hours of family mediation; and five hours of training in domestic violence. Parenting Coordinators will also need to submit an affidavit to the court every two years attesting that the PC continues to meet the qualifications.

Parenting Coordination is a process for resolving issues arising out of a custody order issued by the Court. The Parenting Coordinator (PC) is a trained facilitator appointed by the Court to foster communication and agreement conducive to the best interests of the children. Typical issues include: transitions between households; variations from the parenting plan for special events; school issues; child-care arrangements; and extra-curricular activities.

CORA Good Shepherd Mediation will premiere a 24-hour workshop designed to train attorneys and mental health professionals to be Parenting Coordinators. The new workshop meets the qualifications outlined in the new PA Court Rule reauthorizing court-referred parenting coordination in Pennsylvania. The workshop will be offered twice in March 2019: March 6-8 at CORA Good Shepherd Mediation in Philadelphia, and March 27, 28 & 29 at the Bucks County Bar Association in Doylestown. Register for either of these workshops here. PA-CLE and NASW-CEU will be available for these workshops.