Protecting Children Through Education, Integrity & Global Collaboration: A Conversation with PACCS Founder Dr. Steven Lindenberg - Ep 53

In Episode 53 of Cases & Cocktails, Bryan and Janice Eggleston sit down with Dr. Steven Lindenberg, founder and president of the Professional Alliance for Child-Centered Safety (PACCS), for a wide-ranging discussion on parental alienation, the failures of modern family courts, and the urgent need for better education among professionals who serve children.Sipping on spiked hot chocolate—complete with Irish cream and cinnamon whiskey—the couple welcomes Dr. Lindenberg from his home in Pennsylvania, where he jokes that extra “insulation” keeps him warm in 34-degree weather.A Career Devoted to Families and ChildrenDr. Lindenberg has been a mental health professional for 49 years, following his service in the Air Force, where he ran a 22-chair dental clinic’s X-ray unit. During long nights developing film, young service members confided in him—sparking his lifelong commitment to counseling.Across decades of private practice, he completed grief and bereavement research, worked with terminal cancer patients, and performed hundreds of custody evaluations. Over time, he witnessed a common theme: children were being emotionally damaged by high-conflict custody battles, especially in cases involving parental alienation.This realization led him to study under leading experts, including Dr. William Burnett, and ultimately to form PACCS. Ep 53 - audioWhat Is PACCS?Founded in 2024, PACCS is an international alliance dedicated to promoting child safety, evidence-based practices, and professional collaboration in cases involving parental alienation and high-conflict family dynamics.Membership now includes professionals and parents from the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, and beyond. The organization offers:A growing evidence-based research libraryMonthly educational workshopsPrivate forums for professionalsSupport spaces for targeted parentsA soon-to-launch judges-only confidential Q&A roomTheir mission: “Heal families one child at a time.”Why Education Is the Key to ChangeDr. Lindenberg highlights a critical issue—many judges assigned to family law have no training in psychology, family systems, or the dynamics of alienation. He points to Canada’s model, where judicial education is mandatory before taking the family bench, as an example the U.S. should follow.The Reality of Alienation CasesDespite social media’s influence, true severe alienation cases appear in only about 1% of all custody disputes, but early-stage alienating behaviors are common. Most families, he explains, stabilize early in the process. But parents with entrenched personality traits or a desire to punish often escalate conflict, harming their children in the process.PACCS aims to guide professionals, courts, and parents toward recognizing these patterns early—and intervening before the damage becomes irreversible.Open Membership with PurposePACCS welcomes parents, professionals, and advocates—but only those who acknowledge parental alienation as real and harmful. The alliance screens for individuals seeking to undermine or discredit the field. “We protect our members,” Dr. Lindenberg says. “We protect our mission.”The TakeawayEpisode 53 shines a light on the systemic gaps in family courts and the need for a unified, evidence-based approach to protecting children. Through PAACCS, Dr. Lindenberg is building a global network dedicated to education, integrity, and child-first principles—one that Bryan and Janice proudly join by the episode’s end.