Coping with False Abuse Allegations During Divorce

 Posted on February 21, 2025 in Child Custody

Some spouses will do almost anything to get an advantage in a divorce. Lying about what one’s spouse has said or done is exceptionally common in high-conflict divorce cases. However, making up abuse allegations takes this dishonest strategy to its extremes. Few things that can happen during a divorce are more painful than being falsely accused of abusing your spouse or worse, your children. If your spouse has a history of lying to get his way, it is best to be prepared for these types of allegations to surface. If your spouse has acted abusively toward you in the past, you should be aware that abusers often deflect blame from themselves by accusing their victims of the same acts they themselves committed. You will need an aggressive Rock County, WI high-conflict divorce lawyer to help you fight back. Abuse allegations could impact your child custody issue significantly if your spouse is believed.

How a Guardian ad Litem Can Help 

When there are abuse allegations in a contested child custody case, a guardian ad litem will almost certainly be appointed. A GAL is an attorney who is specially trained to work with children and will be tasked with representing your children’s best interests. GALs are highly skilled in detecting whether a child has been abused or has been coached to lie about abuse by a parent. In cases where one parent is making up abuse allegations, a GAL can often help bring out the truth.

Gathering Evidence That Your Spouse Is Lying 

Your spouse will have to make very specific allegations to convince a court that abuse has taken place. While it is impossible to prove a negative - meaning that you cannot prove that you never abused him - it is quite possible to disprove a specific allegation. For example, say your spouse claims that you hit him and gave him a black eye in early February. If you have a picture of him without a black eye taken in mid-February, this would tend to show that the alleged incident never happened.

Witness testimony can also be very useful. If your spouse claims that you are constantly screaming at your children and throwing things, but your neighbors say that your home is quiet, you have fairly strong proof that your spouse is at least exaggerating.

Divorce attorneys sometimes need to be creative in disproving abuse allegations. It is important to work closely with your lawyer while you are gathering supporting evidence. An attorney will have the best understanding of what types of evidence can be introduced and would be helpful.

Contact a Madison, WI High-Conflict Child Custody Lawyer 

John T. Fields & Associates, LLC is dedicated to helping parents through high-conflict divorce. Dedicated Rock County, WI divorce attorney John T. Fields will do all he can to bring the truth to light and defend your parental rights. Contact us at 608-729-3590 for a confidential consultation.