In this episode I'm resharing my 2022 conversation with Tina Swithin, founder of One Mom's Battle and co-founder of Family Court Awareness Month, because so much of what she said still holds up.
Before the interview, I walk through what has changed in custody law since we recorded. Kayden's Law had just passed Congress when Tina and I spoke, and each state has had to write its own version, so progress has been uneven. I cover California's Piqui's Law, reforms in Maryland, Utah and Pennsylvania, and Tennessee's new requirement that custody judges complete domestic violence training. New Jersey made the biggest change this year. Its January 2026 law drops the presumption favoring frequent contact with both parents, makes child safety the threshold question, and bars courts from assuming a child's resistance to a parent was caused by the other parent. I also explain the gap here in Massachusetts, where coercive control now qualifies as abuse for a 209A restraining order while the custody statute still defines abuse in physical terms.
In the interview, Tina describes how the need for control moves into the family court system once the relationship ends and why judges so often miss it. We talk about counter-parenting, including her reasons for telling clients to keep showing up as the most cooperative co-parent the court has seen until a judge orders parallel parenting. She also explains how she builds documentation around the single issue that keeps recurring in a case, which is the same advice I give my clients every week.
Family Court Awareness Month is every November.
This year's Hot Pink Day falls on Wednesday, November 18.
Resources mentioned: onemomsbattle.com, familycourtawarenessmonth.org, nationalsafeparents.org, and postseparationabuse.com.
My documentation course and Divorcing a Narcissist 101 are linked below.
The Manifesting Formula Welcome to The Manifesting Formula. I’m Christine Rizzo, and if there’s one thing...
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