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For Immediate
Release
11/15/06
CONTACT:
PA
Senate Republican Communications
(717) 787-6725
Corman's Bill Limiting Frivolous Complaints During Child Custody
Hearings
Is Now
in Hands of Governor
HARRISBURG -- This
week the State House passed legislation that will curtail the filing of
frivolous complaints in child custody hearings and provide limited immunity for
child custody evaluators, according to the measure's author, Senator Jake Corman
(R-34).
Corman's Senate Bill 845 is now before the Governor, where it awaits his
signature to become law.
Corman's Senate Bill 845 would prohibit any person who is a party to a
child custody hearing from filing a complaint against a court-appointed
health care or behavioral health care practitioner who is making
recommendations on the child custody agreement or court order. This
prohibition would be in effect prior to the issuance of the final order
and for 60 days after.
Corman
said a survey done in 2001 showed that psychologists who conduct custody
evaluations are at a high risk to be reported to disciplinary boards.
Most of these complaints are frivolous and the large majority are never
accepted by the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs as
formal complaints. Although psychologists do the majority of child
custody evaluations, other professions, such as psychiatry and social
work, have had similar problems, Corman noted.
Corman
said that many attorneys view these complaints as a tactic to attempt to
disqualify a court appointed evaluator who is likely to make an
unfavorable report to the court. By filing a complaint, the parent can
claim that there is an inherent conflict of interest so that the court
appointed evaluator can no longer be objective and that another
evaluator has to be appointed.
"Often
the allegations are distorted, misleading, or are complete
fabrications," Corman said. "Some evaluators have been reported to the
licensing board for making a report of suspected child abuse, even
though Pennsylvania's Child Protective Services Law requires them to do
so."
The
current system, according to Corman, creates a shortage of qualified
court-appointed evaluators, drives up the costs of doing business in
order to defend against frivolous complaints, and bogs down the judicial
process.
Corman's Senate Bill 845 would not preclude aggrieved persons from
filing complaints. However, it attempts to balance the rights of
consumers to file complaints with the needs of the court for objective
information in order to determine the optimal placement of a child in a
child custody dispute. It would require that those who want to file
complaints to the evaluator's licensing board would have to wait for 60
days, after which they could file a complaint.
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