About Me

Helping individuals and families untangle painful issues and find a way to move beyond them with greater clarity is an honor and a privilege.  I offer an unusual combination of sensitive, effective and compassionate therapy skills with the experience and perspective gained from decades of navigating within complex litigation-involved settings and with families dealing with complex, high-conflict court-involved situations. 

My formal education and APA-approved internships emphasized family systems, parenting and couple relationships, and assessment of children’s special needs while respecting diverse, multicultural perspectives. That is combined with deep experience and practice in family court-ordered parenting and custody evaluations, parent coordination, mental health interventions such as reunification and family therapy, and expert testimony. I also regularly consult with other professionals when the interface between therapy work and family law involvement is at issue. I have presented on related topics to judicial officers, mediators, collaborative law professionals, and as guest lecturer in academic settings.

Selected examples from my practice history

• Forensic mental health expert in California,  providing Court-appointed custody evaluations, parent  coordination, family therapy for disrupted parent-child relationships, co-parenting, minor’s therapy and expert testimony

• Developed and provided a continuing education course throughout California, “Family Therapy in Family Court”, to prepare mental health professionals to develop skills to engage in court-involved roles such as court-informed therapists(CIT), parent coordinator or neutral parenting capacity evaluator

• State Professional Responsibility Board, Oregon State Bar , 2018-2021

• Task Force for Children, (invited member) in compliance with Orange County Grand Jury report on the Best Interests of Children, 2013/14

• Director, “The Divorce Experience”, a recurring, 3-part Court-based divorce education program with Hon. Judge Betty Vitousek, Hawaii Superior Court, First Circuit, 1982-1987

• Clinical instructor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Hawaii School of Medicine, supervising psychiatry residents & psychology interns for the U.H. Department of Psychology.

Upon email request, a copy of my vita may be provided.

Education

• PhD, Clinical Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe 1977

• Master of Science, Community Psychology, Cal State University, Long Beach 1975

• Bachelor of Science, Psychology, UCLA 1973