This procedure should apply even if the report of sexual abuse is made by a party in matrimonial litigation. This is to prevent such litigation being treated as a private lawsuit which can be settled or dropped if the adults agree. No professional would want to be open to the charge of having created his or her own clients. If the issue is already joined, the parties could each be allowed to veto one particular expert from the total panel, and any panel member could be excluded on proper grounds, such as a conflict of interest. The word is often used, but little understood.
True validation has investigative, therapeutic, and evidentiary value.
Those are separate distinct areas, with profound implications for the child protective professional, subject children, and those against whom allegations are made. Used in such fashion, two vital benefits emerge. Second, the therapeutic process will begin for the children well in advance of any adjudication. This is especially important in an era when the gap between accusation and trial is often many months. Therefore, all validators should begin as investigative.