Atheists & Agnostics
In reply to the discussion: Atheist Mom Forced Into Court-Ordered Christian Counseling [View all]happyslug
(14,779 posts)To many people have to many issues for the courts to select a counseling service. The courts will order people to go to a one day class on issue that occur during separations, but not a 10 day counselling session. The later are to one on one for the courts to pay for and sooner or later the courts will have to pay for them unless they can get the parties to pay. You can not be held in contempt if you have no money for do what the court order unless the Court finds you could have afford to pay for what was ordered but decided not to.
As to "Court Selection" that is a broad term, which includes court approved counselors who know what the courts want. Thus the court "Selects" counselors suggest to them by the parties. As I said before, the Judge wanted counseling sessions, and some how he approved of this counselor and issued an order for such sessions.
Judges know if a conflict occurs between a counselor and the party being counseled, that undoes the whole benefit of counseling. Thus, Judges leave it up to the parties to select their counselors. Once selected by the parties, the Judge can issue an order naming them as subject to the order (thus "Selecting them" .
Sorry, that the Judge "Selected" the counseling is to broad a term to exclude that the counselor was picked by the Mother.