Forensic Evaluation of Abuse, Alienation & High-Conflict Custody
SPECIALIZED FORENSIC EXPERTISE • COMPLEX FAMILY LAW
Specialized forensic assessment and expert consultation in high-conflict custody, parental alienation and child contact refusal, child sexual abuse allegations, parental fitness, and complex family-law matters.
Areas of Expertise
Complex cases require specialized expertise.
Specialized forensic assessment and consultation at the intersection of psychological functioning, family dynamics, sexual behavior, trauma, and complex legal questions.
01 — HIGH-CONFLICT CHILD CUSTODY
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02 — PARENTAL ALIENATION & CHILD CONTACT REFUSAL
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03 — CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE ALLEGATIONS
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04 — PARENTAL FITNESS & PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING
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05 — PSYCHOSEXUAL MATTERS & RISK ASSESSMENTS
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06 — EXPERT CONSULTATION & TESTIMONY
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FORENSIC EXPERTISE
Specialized expertise for cases when the answers are rarely simple.
Forensic cases rarely present with simple facts or straightforward answers. Effective evaluation requires careful integration of psychological functioning, trauma history, family dynamics, sexual behavior, collateral information, and the specific legal questions before the court.
Upright Forensic Solutions provides focused forensic assessment and expert consultation designed to clarify complex evidence, identify clinically relevant factors, and communicate conclusions in a manner that is objective, ethically grounded, and defensible.
Dr. Sadia Upright, PhD, LCMHCS, CFMHE, CCFC, BCS, CSOT
Forensic Evaluator • Expert Witness • Clinical Sexologist
FOR ATTORNEYS
Complex cases require more than an expert.
They require an analysis that can withstand scrutiny.
Forensic consultation and evaluation designed to help counsel clarify complex evidence, identify the questions that matter, and present conclusions that are objective, ethically grounded, and defensible.
CASE CONSULTATION
Clarify referral questions, identify relevant records and collateral sources, and determine the appropriate scope of forensic inquiry.
FORENSIC ANALYSIS
Evaluate competing narratives, psychological data, behavioral evidence, collateral information, and alternative explanations.
EXPERT SUPPORT
Translate complex findings into clear, defensible opinions for litigation, deposition, mediation, and testimony.
THE UPRIGHT STANDARD
Objective.
Ethical.
Defensible.
Forensic opinions should not simply sound persuasive. They should be grounded in appropriate methodology, relevant data, careful consideration of alternative explanations, and conclusions that remain within the limits of the available evidence.
OBJECTIVE
Conclusions driven by the evidence—not the desired outcome.
ETHICAL
Methods and opinions grounded in professional standards and the appropriate limits of forensic practice.
DEFENSIBLE
Clear reasoning, transparent methodology, and conclusions capable of withstanding professional and legal scrutiny.
WHEN TO REFER
When the case changes,
the questions change.
Some cases require more than additional information. They require a different level of forensic inquiry.
Forensic consultation or evaluation may become particularly important when new allegations emerge, competing explanations develop, psychological factors become central to the litigation, or the existing evidence no longer adequately answers the questions before the court.
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A child suddenly resists or refuses contact with a parent, and the reasons for that change are unclear. Careful assessment may be necessary to distinguish among multiple possible contributors rather than presuming a single explanation.
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Allegations of sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, coercion, or other concerning behavior become central to the case. Specialized forensic inquiry can assist in evaluating the available evidence, competing explanations, and relevant contextual factors.
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Parents, children, treatment providers, or collateral sources present materially different accounts of events. Forensic analysis can help identify areas of convergence and contradiction and evaluate the evidence supporting competing explanations.
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Questions involving trauma, personality functioning, mental health, parenting capacity, or family dynamics become relevant to the legal issues before the court.
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Sexual behavior, problematic sexual interests, offending history, recidivism risk, or treatment needs require specialized psychosexual assessment and risk-informed analysis.
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An existing evaluation or expert opinion does not adequately address the psycholegal question, available evidence, methodology, competing hypotheses, or limitations relevant to the matter before the court.
The Referral Process
A clear process from referral to forensic opinion.
01
INITIAL CONSULTATION
Discuss the legal questions, case posture, existing evidence, and determine the appropriate forensic service.
02
SCOPE & ENGAGEMENT
Define the psycholegal questions, relevant records, collateral sources, and parameters of the forensic inquiry.
03
FORENSIC ANALYSIS
Review and integrate assessment data, records, collateral information, behavioral evidence, and competing explanations.
04
FINDINGS & CONSULTATION
Communicate conclusions through written findings, attorney consultation, deposition, or expert testimony, as appropriate.
SPECIALIZED FORENSIC EVALUATIONS
The right evaluation begins with the right question.
Not every complex case requires the same type of forensic inquiry. The scope of an evaluation should be driven by the psycholegal questions before the court, the available evidence, and the specific clinical or behavioral issues requiring examination.
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Evaluation of parenting capacity, psychological functioning, family dynamics, child needs, and factors relevant to custody and parenting-time determinations.
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Focused assessment of child resistance or refusal, parental alienating behaviors, estrangement, realistic estrangement, loyalty conflicts, and other factors affecting the parent–child relationship.
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Forensic evaluation of psychological and behavioral evidence relevant to allegations of sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, coercion, and competing explanations.
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Assessment of sexual behavior, sexual interests, risk factors, treatment needs, and other psychosexual issues relevant to civil, criminal, or family court matters.
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Evaluation of trauma exposure, victimization, symptom presentation, behavioral responses, and the relationship between reported experiences and psychological functioning.
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Independent review of records, prior evaluations, methodology, psychological data, competing hypotheses, and the strengths and limitations of existing forensic opinions.
Not sure which evaluation your case requires? Start with the psycholegal question.
EXPERTISE BEHIND THE OPINION
Complex cases demand
specialized expertise.
Forensic questions rarely exist within a single discipline. Effective analysis requires the ability to examine psychological functioning, trauma, sexual behavior, victimization, family dynamics, and risk within the context of the legal question before the court.
FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY & VICTIMOLOGY
Advanced doctoral training in the analysis of behavior, victimization, and complex forensic questions.
CLINICAL SEXOLOGY
Specialized expertise in sexual behavior, psychosexual functioning, sexual risk, and sex-offense-related matters.
TRAUMA & MALTREATMENT
Advanced training in trauma, abuse, victimization, and the behavioral effects of complex traumatic experiences.
FORENSIC EXPERIENCE
Experience where the questions are rarely simple
100+ FORENSIC EVALUATIONS
Complex civil, criminal, family-court and psychosexual matters
EXPERT WITNESS AND COURTROOM EXPERIENCE
Qualified to provide expert testimony in civil, criminal and federal matters.
CIVIL-CRIMININAL-FEDERAL CASEWORK
Experience conducting forensic assessments across multiple legal settings
SPECIALIZED PRACTICE IN COMPLEX CASES
Custody disputes, parent-child contact problems, abuse allegations, psychosexual concerns, sexual risk, trauma and victimization.
FORENSIC FIELD GUIDE
What Legal Professionals Need to Know.
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A child custody evaluation examines the broader family system and questions related to custody, parenting time, parent-child relationships, and the child's needs.
A parental fitness evaluation is typically narrower, focusing on whether concerns about a particular parent's psychological, behavioral, cognitive, or other functioning affect that person's ability to parent.
Typical psycholegal questions:
Are identified psychological or behavioral concerns affecting parenting capacity? What parenting strengths, limitations, or interventions are relevant to the identified concerns? -
Not necessarily. A child's resistance or refusal of contact describes what is happening—it does not explain why.
A child's rejection of a parent may develop for many reasons, including harmful parenting experiences, estrangement, alienating behaviors, loyalty conflicts, anxiety, developmental factors, family conflict, or a combination of influences.
Typical psycholegal questions:
What factors are contributing to the child's resistance or refusal of contact?
Are behaviors by either parent contributing to or maintaining the parent–child contact problem? -
Not by itself. Psychological testing, symptoms, or a diagnosis cannot independently establish that a specific act of abuse occurred.
A forensic evaluation can examine the child's psychological functioning, reported experiences, behavioral presentation, relevant records and collateral information, and whether there are reasonable alternative explanations for the findings. The conclusions that can be offered depend upon the evaluator's role, the referral question, and the evidence available.
Typical psycholegal questions:
What psychological or behavioral findings are relevant to the allegations before the court?
What alternative explanations should be considered when interpreting the child's presentation? -
A psychosexual evaluation may be appropriate when sexual behavior, sexual interests, sexual offending, boundaries, or sexual risk are directly relevant to the legal question before the court. The scope can vary considerably depending on the nature of the case and the person being evaluated.
Importantly, the presence of a sexual allegation does not automatically mean that a psychosexual evaluation is the appropriate next step. The question is what information the court actually needs.
Typical psycholegal questions:
Are there sexual behaviors, interests, or risk factors relevant to the concerns before the court?
What treatment, supervision, safety, or risk-management considerations are supported by the findings? -
A strong referral question identifies what the court needs to understand rather than telling the evaluator what conclusion to reach. The wording matters because the question helps define the scope of the evaluation—and ultimately what the evaluator can responsibly answer.
Instead of asking:
“Is this parent mentally ill?”Consider asking:
“Are psychological or behavioral factors affecting this parent's ability to meet the child's needs?”Instead of asking:
“Is this parental alienation?”Consider asking:
“What factors are contributing to the child's resistance or refusal of contact, and what role, if any, do the behaviors of either parent play?”The better question is usually not “What label fits?” but “What does the court need to understand to make its decision?”
Start with the question.
We'll determine what comes next.
For attorneys, Guardians ad Litem, courts, and other professionals seeking forensic evaluations, consultations, or expert services in complex matters.
HAVE A CASE TO DISCUSS?
