High-conflict family separations don't end when court orders are made. For many families, the real challenge begins afterwards – managing day-to-day co-parenting decisions, navigating communication breakdowns and shielding children from ongoing conflict.
Traditional legal pathways often fall short in these situations, leaving families cycling back to court at significant emotional and financial cost. The alternative is Parenting Coordination: a structured, child-focused intervention that's gaining recognition as a powerful alternative to repeated litigation.
We sat down with Anne-Marie Cade – Lawyer, Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner, Parenting Coordinator, Divorce Coach, Mediator, and Adjunct Lecturer at the College of Law – to learn how she built a career at the intersection of law and conflict resolution, and why Parenting Coordination is transforming outcomes for high-conflict families. As a Churchill Fellow and Creswick Fellow, she is a well-recognised expert in the field, conducting research into Parenting Coordination internationally.
From litigation to lasting solutions
Anne-Marie Cade's career did not follow the traditional family law trajectory.
“I've always been passionate about resolving conflict constructively and protecting children's wellbeing during family transitions,” she begins. “Early in my career I saw how traditional court-centric approaches often escalated conflict rather than resolving it.”
That realisation led her from mainstream family law practice into mediation and family dispute resolution, and eventually to more advanced interventions like Parenting Coordination and Divorce Coaching.
Today, Anne-Marie works as a Parenting Coordinator, Divorce Coach, Family Mediator and Adjunct Lecturer at the College of Law. She's also recently launched the Parenting Coordination Institute, providing training and support for professionals wanting to integrate Parenting Coordination into their practice.
Her journey reflects a growing recognition in the legal profession: families need more than court orders to navigate separation successfully.
What is Parenting Coordination – and why does it matter?
Parenting Coordination is a structured, child-centred dispute resolution and case management process that helps high-conflict separated parents implement parenting orders and manage day-to-day co-parenting issues.
“Unlike one-off mediation that seeks an agreement at a point in time, PC is ongoing – usually over a period of 12 to 24 months and is a non-confidential process,” explains Anne-Marie. “It combines education, coaching, dispute resolution support and case management over time.”
The goal? To reduce litigation, improve communication and ensure parents make consistent, developmentally appropriate decisions for their children.
“Parenting Coordination responds to a well-recognised gap,” she says. “Many separated families continue to struggle after court orders are finalised. Standard legal pathways often don't equip parents with tools to manage ongoing issues. PC fills that void, offering a proactive and pragmatic process that decreases re-litigation risk and better supports children’s stability. It helps shield the children from ongoing interparental conflict.”
It's particularly effective for high-conflict dynamics, repeated disputes over parenting arrangements, communication breakdowns and situations where parents need structured support to implement court-ordered arrangements.
“By focusing on communication skills, conflict management education, consistent decision-making and trauma-responsive practices, parenting coordination helps shield children from escalating conflict and helps parents build patterns of cooperation that reduce the emotional harm of ongoing conflict,” Anne-Marie explains.
Real impact: How Parenting Coordination transforms families
Anne-Marie shares an example from her practice that illustrates the power of this approach.
“In a high-conflict case where parents were repeatedly litigating issues, I helped the family establish an agreed communication protocol and had monthly check-ins with them,” she recalls.
“The communication patterns improved significantly as they were able to adhere to the boundaries I had set for them rather than engaging in blame-speak. They each agreed to bring two issues for discussion to each meeting, and they were able to have constructive conversations around co-parenting arrangements, changeovers, shared holiday time and so on.”
These were parents who had previously been unable to communicate on any issue – all communication had to go through lawyers. Within months, communication between them improved and both parents reported less stress and more consistent routines for their children.
Parenting Coordination is increasingly relied upon internationally, with courts and practitioners in the United States, Canada, Israel, South Africa and part of Europe adopting the approach.
“Rather than trying to eliminate conflict altogether, Parenting Coordination works by containing it, managing it and working towards child-focused, day-to-day problem-solving,” says Anne-Marie. “The role of the PC is akin to that of a peacekeeper.”
Why lawyers should understand PC – even if they don't become parenting coordinators
You don't need to become a Parenting Coordinator to benefit from understanding this intervention.
“From my international research into this practice, I found that it has been successfully implemented in jurisdictions where judges and lawyers are trained in Parenting Coordination so they have a deep understanding of the value of this intervention,” Anne-Marie explains.
“Lawyers play a critical role in the process by educating their clients about this intervention.”
Even without formal PC training, lawyers can apply key principles from the field immediately.
First, communication: “Slow conversations down, reflect what you hear before responding, and encourage clients to use child-focused language rather than blame-based framing. Even small shifts in tone can reduce escalation.”
Second, managing high-conflict clients: “Set clear boundaries early, normalise strong emotions without reinforcing them and redirect clients away from ‘winning’ and towards workable outcomes they can live with long term. Structure and predictability reduce anxiety and conflict.”
Third, coaching and trauma-informed techniques: “Help clients regulate before they negotiate by naming emotions, grounding discussions in the present and using curiosity rather than confrontation. Simple questions like ‘What would make this easier for your child?’ can shift a stuck interaction into a constructive one.”
For those wanting to deepen their understanding, Anne-Marie is launching a comprehensive 40-hour Parenting Coordination training course in June 2026, incorporating her learnings in international best practice and trauma-informed approaches. The course will include role plays and a mentoring component.
Anne-Marie's work represents a shift in how the legal profession approaches family separation – from adversarial to collaborative, from court-focused to child-focused, and from one-off interventions to ongoing support.
“I hope more lawyers understand that Parenting Coordination is not an informal add-on to the legal process but rather a highly structured, child-focused intervention that fills a critical gap after court orders are made,” she reflects.
“When lawyers understand how and when to use Parenting Coordination, they can offer clients a pathway that reduces re-litigation, lowers emotional and financial costs and delivers more stable, sustainable outcomes for children and families.”
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