A Social Neutral Evaluation (SENE) is a meeting with parents, their attorneys, and an evaluation team to attempt to reach agreement on custody and parenting time issues. The evaluation team is typically one male/one female and one attorney/one mental health provider. Some parents attend the SENE “pro se” (without an attorney).
Each parent is given time to provide information they would like the evaluation team to have about the family, the children, and his/her proposed resolution to the issues. The evaluators provide recommendations based on the information the parents share, including an opinion on how they believe the court might rule on custody and parenting time. Once the evaluators deliver their recommendations and feedback, they help the parents negotiate resolution. If parents are not able to agree, the SENE remains confidential and the court is not provided the evaluators’ recommendations.