Although both services are designed to improve functioning between separated or divorced parents, they serve different purposes.

Coparenting counseling may be voluntary or court ordered and focuses primarily on helping parents establish a workable coparenting system. For many families, this begins with parallel parenting and may progress toward cooperative coparenting when appropriate.

Parenting coordination is court ordered and provides a more structured process for families experiencing persistent coparenting conflict. Depending upon the court order, the Parenting Coordinator may also have limited authority to provide instructions or resolve certain disputes when parents reach an impasse.

Coparenting counseling helps separated or divorced parents develop a healthier and more effective way of parenting across two households.

Our approach is primarily based upon a parallel parenting model. Parallel parenting can be especially helpful in high-conflict coparenting situations or when communication between parents frequently results in arguments, misunderstandings, or unnecessary conflict.

Rather than expecting parents to communicate extensively or make every decision together, parallel parenting emphasizes clear boundaries, predictable expectations, appropriate communication, and defined areas of parental responsibility.

The goal is not necessarily to repair the parents' personal relationship. Instead, the goal is to create a functional coparenting structure that allows both parents to focus on their children while reducing opportunities for conflict.

When parents are ready and interested in developing a more collaborative relationship, coparenting counseling can also help them move toward cooperative coparenting. This may involve improving communication, increasing flexibility, developing joint problem-solving skills, and learning to make parenting decisions more effectively together.

Coparenting counseling may be voluntary or court ordered.

Parenting coordination is different from coparenting counseling.

Parenting coordination is a court-ordered process generally used when parents experience persistent conflict, repeated disagreements, difficulty implementing a parenting plan, or other coparenting problems that require greater structure and intervention.

The Parenting Coordinator works within the authority provided by the court order appointing the Parenting Coordinator.

Depending upon the order, parenting coordination may include helping parents:

• Implement and follow their parenting plan

• Resolve recurring parenting disputes

• Establish more effective communication protocols

• Clarify expectations and boundaries

• Address disagreements regarding schedules, exchanges, activities, and other parenting matters

• Reduce children's exposure to ongoing parental conflict

• Develop practical solutions when disagreements arise

Parenting Coordination & Decision-Making

In some cases, a Parenting Coordinator may be granted limited decision-making or arbitration authority by the court.

This means that when parents reach an impasse on an issue that falls within the Parenting Coordinator's authorized scope, the Parenting Coordinator may be permitted to provide instructions or make certain determinations regarding how the issue will be handled.

The Parenting Coordinator's authority is determined by the court order. Parenting coordination does not provide unlimited authority to make decisions for a family or modify matters outside the scope established by the court.

Short-Term & Long-Term Parenting Coordination

Parenting coordination may be short-term or long-term depending upon the needs of the family and the terms of the court order.

Some families may need parenting coordination during a particularly difficult period following separation, divorce, or a custody dispute. Other families may benefit from longer-term involvement when disagreements repeatedly arise or the parents have significant difficulty resolving issues independently.

The court order will typically establish the scope and duration of the Parenting Coordinator's involvement.

Effective coparenting requires clear expectations.

For this reason, parents participating in coparenting counseling will need to provide their existing parenting plan or custody order. The parenting plan gives us a framework for addressing issues such as parenting time, exchanges, communication, decision-making, holidays, school matters, extracurricular activities, travel, boundaries between households, and other recurring parenting concerns.

If parents do not currently have a parenting plan, an informal parenting plan will need to be developed for purposes of the coparenting process.

An informal parenting plan developed through coparenting counseling is intended to provide structure and clarity for the parents. It does not replace a legally enforceable parenting plan or court order.

Our coparenting counseling and parenting coordination services are offered at different service levels based upon the complexity of the case, level of documentation required, and degree of professional involvement necessary.

Services are generally classified as Simple Services, Complex Services, or Specialized Case Services. The appropriate service level is determined based upon the needs and circumstances of each case.

Simple Services

$250 — 60-minute session
$300 — 90-minute session

Simple Services are appropriate for parents who need assistance establishing or maintaining a functional coparenting relationship without the need for extensive documentation or case management.

Each session includes a brief written summary, similar to basic meeting minutes. These summaries are intentionally concise and generally consist of brief bullet points identifying:

• Primary topics discussed

• Agreements reached

• Recommendations provided

• Issues requiring follow-up

Simple Services may be appropriate for voluntary or court-ordered coparenting counseling when the primary focus is improving communication, establishing a parallel parenting structure, resolving routine disagreements, or maintaining an already established parenting plan.

Complex Services

$325 — 60-minute session
$375 — 90-minute session

Complex Services are appropriate when a case requires greater structure, more detailed documentation, or closer attention to ongoing coparenting issues.

The primary distinction between Simple and Complex Services is the level of documentation provided following each session.

Complex Services include a substantially more thorough written summary that functions similarly to detailed meeting minutes. Depending upon the session, documentation may include the issues presented, concerns or positions raised by each parent, agreements reached, recommendations provided, unresolved matters, and issues requiring continued attention.

Complex Services may be appropriate when coparenting counseling is court ordered, attorneys or other professionals are involved, disagreements are recurring, or the circumstances require a more comprehensive record of the coparenting process.

Specialized Case Services

$450 — 60-minute session
$500 — 90-minute session

Specialized Case Services are designed for cases requiring a significantly greater level of professional involvement, preparation, documentation, and case oversight.

These services may be appropriate for highly litigious or high-conflict matters, cases involving significant behavioral concerns, longstanding patterns of dysfunctional coparenting, extensive court involvement, or other circumstances requiring an individualized approach.

Unlike Simple or Complex Services, Specialized Case Services may involve designing the coparenting or parenting coordination process based upon a broader understanding of the family's history and circumstances. This may include consideration of:

• Relevant case and family history

• Existing parenting plans and court orders

• Prior or current litigation

• Relevant records and documentation

• Psychological, custody, or other professional assessments when available and appropriate

• Patterns of parental communication and behavior

• Observations made during sessions

• Previous attempts to resolve recurring disputes

• Other factors relevant to establishing a functional coparenting structure

The additional fee reflects not simply the level of conflict between parents, but the increased professional responsibility, preparation, documentation, and case management associated with these matters.

Classification as a Specialized Case Services matter is based upon the overall circumstances and professional assessment of the case rather than any single disagreement, allegation, or incident.

Determining the Appropriate Service Level

The appropriate service level is determined by the needs and complexity of the case.

Families may begin at one service level and transition to another if circumstances change. For example, a case that initially requires only brief documentation may later require more extensive summaries, records review, professional coordination, or greater case oversight.

Similarly, a case requiring a higher level of service may transition to a less intensive level as conflict decreases and the parents develop a more stable and functional coparenting structure.

This structure allows us to match the level of professional involvement to the needs of each family while maintaining the same underlying goal: reducing unnecessary parental conflict and creating a predictable, functional, and child-focused coparenting relationship.