| Family law professionals in California are often presented with cases that require in-depth knowledge of multifaceted issues—such as parental relocation, parent-child contact problems, family violence, and the needs of neurodivergent adults or children. These challenges are frequently interwoven and evolve rapidly, making it essential for practitioners to stay informed about the latest research, case law, and interdisciplinary approaches relevant to court-involved children and families.
The urgency of these matters, combined with the emotional and developmental impact on children, places tremendous pressure on family law professionals to respond efficiently and effectively. Yet, due to the complexity of these cases, there is no standardized protocol or universally accepted approach for professionals to follow. This creates a pressing need for collective knowledge-sharing and innovation within our field.
This conference aims to bring together professionals working at the intersection of law, psychology, and child development to highlight what works—practical, experience-informed solutions that can support and guide colleagues handling similar cases. Our goal is to build an accessible, centralized, and evidence-based framework that practitioners can use when working with court-involved families.
“AFCC California continues to seek to add new voices to our exceptional panels and is looking to create a culture of mentorship not only in the field but at the annual conference by inviting seasoned presenters to pair with less experienced ones. We also invite professionals representing traditionally under-represented populations (e.g. people of color, LGBTQ+ people) and those outside of family law to submit proposals. AFCC-CA further seeks to broaden AFCC-CA’s reach into underserved communities and invites presenters to add content that is focused on racial, ethnic, gender, LGBTQ+, and socio-economic diversity.”
AFCC‐CA INVITES YOUR PROPOSALS for 4‐hour Institutes and 90 or 120‐minute Workshops.
AFCC California is soliciting proposals for the California AFCC Annual Conference to be held February 6-8, 2026 in Sacramento, California.
Proposed Topics may include:
- Evidence-informed interventions for cases involving parent-child contact issues.
- Interventions that address cultural diversity issues in family law cases.
- Recruiting more mental health professionals into family law practice.
- Developing ethical and prudent parent coaching protocols.
- Non-traditional families involved in family law cases.
- Intersection between family law and immigration law issues.
- What judges need from family law practitioners to make informed decisions.
- Best practices in working with self-represented litigants.
- Working with transgender children or adults.
- Settlement-focused parenting plan evaluations.
- Family violence issues and updates.
- Working with Neurodivergent adults and/or children.
- Working with adults and/or children with physical disabilities.
- Best practices in conducting brief focused assessments.
- Updates and best practices for minor’s counsel.
- Alternative dispute resolution interventions (including but not limited to Parenting Coordination and Child Custody Recommending Counseling or Mediation).
- Supervised visitation services.
- Best practices in child forensic interviewing.
- Working with Children with complex medical issues.
- Ethical and prudent consultation in child custody litigation.
- Social media and its impact on children, parents, and family law practitioners.
- The impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on our work.
- Substance use evaluations and interventions in family law cases.
- Ethical and risk management practices for family law professionals
TO BE CONSIDERED, ALL PROPOSALS MUST INCLUDE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION:
1. TITLE, PRESENTERS, AND PREFERRED LENGTH OF PRESENTATION, E.G., WORKSHOP (90 OR 120 MINUTES); INSTITUTE (4 HOURS);
2. AN ABSTRACT OF 150 WORDS OR LESS DESCRIBING YOUR PROPOSED WORKSHOP OR INSTITUTE;
3. A ONE-PAGE OUTLINE OF YOUR PROPOSED SESSION;
4. THREE (3) LEARNING OBJECTIVES STATED IN BEHAVIORAL TERMS (*SEE BELOW);
5. THREE (3) CITATIONS FROM PROFESSIONAL LITERATURE WITHIN THE LAST TEN YEARS THAT PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR YOUR PROGRAM (DO NOT INCLUDE NEWSLETTER ARTICLES OR LINKS TO WEBSITES);
6. A 100-WORD BIOGRAPHY AND A FULL RESUME/CV FOR EACH PRESENTER (THESE DOCUMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE, NOT COMBINED);
7. NAME, ADDRESS, TELEPHONE NUMBER AND E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR EACH PRESENTER. YOU MUST IDENTIFY WHICH PRESENTER WILL BE THE “COORDINATOR” FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. NO MORE THAN FOUR (4) PRESENTERS FOR ANY PROGRAM; AND,
8. TWO (2) PROFESSIONAL REFERENCES.
AFCC CALIFORNIA INVITES THE PARTICIPATION OF ALL PROFESSIONALS WHOSE WORK INVOLVES ISSUES RELATED TO THE CUSTODY OF CHILDREN.
We look forward to seeing you in February!
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