Mexico Parental Alienation Law
Art. 1. This Law provides for parental alienation.
Art. 2. An act of parental alienation is considered to be interference in the psychological formation of the child or adolescent promoted or induced by one of the parents, by the grandparents or by those who have the child or adolescent under their authority, custody or surveillance to repudiate the parent or that causes damage to the establishment or maintenance of links with it.
Single paragraph. Exemplary forms of parental alienation, in addition to the acts thus declared by the judge or found by expert examination, performed directly or with the help of third parties:
I - carry out a campaign to disqualify the parent’s conduct in the exercise of paternity or maternity;
II - hinder the exercise of parental authority;
III - hinder contact of a child or adolescent with a parent; IV - hinder the exercise of the regulated right to family life;
V - deliberately omitting relevant personal information about the child or adolescent from the parent, including school, medical and address changes;
VI - to present a false complaint against a parent, against his or her family members or against grandparents, to prevent or hinder their coexistence with the child or adolescent;
VII - change the domicile to a distant place, without justification, aiming at making it difficult for the child or adolescent to live with the other parent, their family members or grandparents.
Art. 3. The practice of parental alienation violates the fundamental right of the child or adolescent to healthy family life, impairs the realization of affection in relationships with the parent and the family group, constitutes moral abuse against the child or adolescent and non-compliance with duties inherent to parental authority or arising from guardianship or custody.
Art. 4. Declared evidence of an act of parental alienation, at request or ex officio, at any procedural moment, in an autonomous or incidental action, the process will have priority processing, and the judge will urgently determine, after hearing the Public Ministry, the provisional measures necessary to preserve the psychological integrity of the child or adolescent, including ensuring their coexistence with the parent or enabling the effective rapprochement between the two, if applicable.
Single paragraph. The child or adolescent and the parent will be guaranteed a minimum guarantee of assisted visitation, except in cases where there is an imminent risk of damage to the physical or psychological integrity of the child or adolescent, attested by a professional eventually appointed by the judge to monitor the visits.
Art. 5. If there is evidence of the practice of parental alienation, in autonomous or incidental action, the judge, if necessary, will determine psychological or biopsychosocial expertise.
1. The expert report will be based on a broad psychological or biopsychosocial assessment, as the case may be, including a personal interview with the parties, examination of documents in the file, history of the couple’s relationship and separation, chronology of incidents, personality assessment of those involved and examining how the child or adolescent expresses himself about any accusation against a parent.
2. The expertise will be carried out by a qualified professional or multidisciplinary team, required, in any case, an aptitude proven by professional or academic history to diagnose acts of parental alienation.
3. The expert or multidisciplinary team designated to verify the occurrence of parental alienation shall have a period of 90 (ninety) days to present the report, which can be extended exclusively by judicial authorization based on a detailed justification.
Art. 6. Characterized typical acts of parental alienation or any conduct that makes it difficult for a child or adolescent to live with a parent, in an autonomous or incidental action, the judge may, cumulatively or not, without prejudice to the resulting civil or criminal liability and the wide use of procedural instruments capable of inhibiting or mitigating their effects, depending on the seriousness of the case:
I - declare the occurrence of parental alienation and warn the alienator;
II - expand the family life regime in favor of the alienated parent;
III - stipulate a fine for the alienator;
IV - determine psychological and / or biopsychosocial monitoring;
V - determine the change from custody to shared custody or its inversion;
VI - determine the precautionary fixation of the child’s or adolescent’s home;
VII - declare the suspension of parental authority.
Single paragraph. Characterized by an abusive change of address, impracticability or obstruction of family life, the judge may also reverse the obligation to take the child or adolescent to or from the parent’s residence, during alternating periods of family life.
Art. 7. The allocation or change of custody will be given preference by the parent that enables the effective coexistence of the child or adolescent with the other parent in cases where it is impracticable to custody.