New Ways for Families® — Counselor Training A structured counseling method for high-conflict separation, divorce, and complex co-parenting cases.
Go beyond traditional approaches to high-conflict family counseling with a practical, skills-based method developed by Bill Eddy and High Conflict Institute.
This comprehensive 12-hour live virtual training prepares licensed counselors, therapists, and family law mental health professionals to deliver New Ways for Families® using the Parent Workbook and a structured counseling process.
Rather than relying primarily on insight or discussion, counselors teach parents the 4 Big Skills™—Managed Emotions, Flexible Thinking, Moderate Behaviors, and Checking Yourself—through guided exercises, practice, and practical application.
Developed specifically for high-conflict separation and divorce, the method also provides a framework for working with complex family dynamics, including cases involving domestic violence, parent-child contact problems, alienation and estrangement concerns, with appropriate safety assessment and clinical judgment.
12-hour live virtual training with Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq. · Pathway to HCI Provider Licensure
Your instructor
Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq.
Co-founder, High Conflict Institute
Upcoming live sessions
All dates U.S.-based · times in Pacific Time (PT)
- Open
February 16, 17 & 18, 2027
9:00 AM – 1:30 PM PT (includes a 30-minute break) · three live sessions
- Open
September 21, 22 & 23, 2027
3:00 PM – 7:30 PM PT (includes a 30-minute break) · three live sessions
When traditional family counseling isn’t enough.
Separation and divorce can create significant challenges for mental health professionals, particularly when parents are emotionally reactive, focused on blame, resistant to feedback, or involved in ongoing legal disputes.
Traditional counseling approaches often emphasize insight, communication, and understanding relationship dynamics. While these approaches can be valuable, they may be less effective when parents struggle to regulate emotions, consider different perspectives, or change behaviors that contribute to conflict.
New Ways for Families® offers a different approach.
Developed by Bill Eddy from decades of clinical, family law, and divorce mediation experience, New Ways for Families® is a structured, skills-based counseling method that helps parents learn and practice the behaviors needed to manage high-conflict situations more effectively.
Rather than requiring parents to recognize their contribution to the conflict before they can make progress, counselors teach the 4 Big Skills™ through a consistent sequence of workbook exercises, discussion, and practice.
The result is a practical approach that gives counselors a clear framework for helping parents build skills, manage their own behavior, and make more constructive parenting decisions—even when the other parent is unwilling or unable to participate.
How New Ways for Families® counseling works.
New Ways for Families® uses a structured, skills-based counseling process designed to help parents develop practical behaviors that support healthier family interactions and more constructive decision-making.
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Individual parent counseling
Parents work individually with a trained New Ways for Families® Counselor using the Parent Workbook. Through structured exercises, discussion, and skills practice, they learn the 4 Big Skills™ and how to apply them to emotional reactions, communication, parenting decisions, and conflict.
The focus is on what each parent can control—their own choices and behavior—rather than changing or blaming the other parent. -
Parent-child counseling
When clinically appropriate, structured parent-child sessions provide opportunities for parents to practice the skills with their children, listen to their concerns, and strengthen constructive interactions.
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Co-parenting and decision-making
Depending on the family’s circumstances, safety considerations, and professional roles, the method can support parents in applying their skills to co-parenting communication, problem-solving, and parenting decisions.
The structured approach provides consistency while allowing qualified professionals to exercise clinical judgment based on individual family needs, safety concerns, and court requirements.
Outcomes you'll bring back from New Ways for Families® Counselor Training.
By completing New Ways for Families® Counselor Training, you’ll be prepared to:
- Apply the structured New Ways for Families® counseling method with parents experiencing separation, divorce, and high-conflict family dynamics.
- Teach the 4 Big Skills™: Managed Emotions, Flexible Thinking, Moderate Behaviors, and Checking Yourself.
- Guide parents through the New Ways for Families® Parent Workbook using structured exercises, discussion, and skills practice.
- Help parents manage emotional reactions, think more flexibly, moderate behavior, and take responsibility for their own choices and actions.
- Work with parents who are resistant to feedback, focused on blame, or struggling to change entrenched behavior patterns.
- Apply the method’s individual-parent and parent-child counseling protocols, including appropriate professional boundaries and confidentiality considerations.
- Recognize complex family dynamics involving domestic violence, coercive control, estrangement, and parent-child contact problems, and determine when modifications, safeguards, or referrals are necessary.
- Help parents develop skills that support more constructive communication, parenting decisions, and conflict management.
- Integrate New Ways for Families® into clinical or court-involved practice while maintaining appropriate ethical, documentation, and professional standards.
Who New Ways for Families® Counselor Training is built for.
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapists
Clinicians working with separated or divorced parents, complex family relationships, and high-conflict co-parenting dynamics.
Clinical Social Workers & Professional Counselors
Mental health professionals seeking a structured, skills-based counseling method for helping parents manage behavior, emotions, and conflict.
Psychologists
Psychologists working with parents and families affected by separation, divorce, and complex interpersonal dynamics.
Court-Involved Mental Health Professionals
Qualified therapists providing court-involved treatment, parent-child counseling, or other clinical services within family law settings.
Family Service Clinicians
Licensed mental health professionals working in agencies, family service organizations, and programs serving separating or divorcing families.
Family Court & Program Professionals
Court administrators, parenting coordinators, and family law professionals interested in understanding or implementing the method within court-connected services. Clinical provider licensing is subject to applicable professional qualifications and HCI requirements.
Curriculum & counseling materials
Professional Guidebook The framework counselors and therapists use to deliver the method. View the book 
Parent Workbook Structured exercises each parent works through in session. View the book New Ways for Families® is a structured, skills-based counseling method supported by two complementary resources that guide professionals and parents through learning and applying the 4 Big Skills™.
New Ways for Families® Professional Guidebook
Designed for trained counselors and therapists, the Professional Guidebook provides the framework for delivering the New Ways for Families® counseling method, including structured session guidance, professional considerations, and practical strategies for helping parents develop and apply the skills.
New Ways for Families® Parent Workbook
The Parent Workbook guides parents through structured exercises and practical applications to help them manage emotions, think flexibly, moderate behaviors, and take responsibility for their actions. Counselors use the workbook during individual sessions to reinforce learning, guide skills practice, and help parents apply the skills to real-life parenting and co-parenting challenges.
Together, these resources provide a consistent, practical counseling process that can be adapted to individual family circumstances and clinical needs.
Both materials are required and must be purchased separately from the training. Each participating parent needs their own Parent Workbook.
How New Ways for Families® Counselor Training works.
This comprehensive 12-hour live virtual training, taught by Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq., prepares licensed mental health professionals to deliver the New Ways for Families® counseling method in their practice.
Through instruction, demonstrations, case discussions, practical exercises, and interactive role-play, participants learn how to teach the 4 Big Skills™ and guide parents through the structured New Ways counseling process.
Your training includes:
- 12 hours of live virtual instruction — Three interactive Zoom sessions with Bill Eddy covering the method, curriculum, counseling protocols, and practical applications.
- Demonstrations and role-play — Practice applying the method to challenging separation, divorce, and co-parenting situations.
- Provider Licensure — Eligible participants may obtain an HCI-issued New Ways for Families® Counselor License, subject to licensing requirements.
- Provider Network membership — Opportunities for ongoing professional learning and connection with other New Ways providers.
- HCI Provider Directory — Optional public listing for eligible licensed counselors.
- Bonus Training — Pre-Mediation Coaching and Decision Skills training.
- Certificate of Completion — Documentation of 12 hours of training.
- Email Support — Assistance with course content and implementation questions.
Additional support: Licensed counselors may separately enroll in the New Ways for Families® Counselor Consultation Group for ongoing case consultation with Bill Eddy.
Methods taught in New Ways for Families® Counselor Training.
4 Big Skills™
The core skills you'll teach parents and children: Flexible Thinking, Managed Emotions, Moderate Behaviors, Checking Yourself.
Individual Parent Sessions
Structured one-on-one parent work using a workbook-based protocol.
Parent-Child Sessions
A clear protocol for clinical sessions with parent and child together.
Co-Parent Sessions
Structured sessions for co-parents working on decisions and communication.
Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq.
Co-founder and Director of Innovation of High Conflict Institute, Bill Eddy brings more than 40 years of experience in family law, divorce mediation, and mental health to his work with high-conflict families. A former California Certified Family Law Specialist, licensed clinical social worker, and former Senior Family Mediator at the National Conflict Resolution Center in San Diego, Bill has handled hundreds of family law cases and divorce mediations, giving him a rare understanding of the legal, emotional, and behavioral dynamics of separation and divorce.
Bill pioneered the High Conflict Personality Theory and developed the New Ways for Families® method, drawing on his extensive clinical and legal experience to create a structured, skills-based counseling approach for parents navigating separation and divorce. Originally developed for use with high-conflict and court-involved families, the method has been adapted for different professional settings and delivery models. He has trained judges, attorneys, mediators, mental health professionals, and family court personnel in more than 35 U.S. states and 13 countries.
An award-winning family mediator and author of more than 25 books, Bill’s publications include New Ways for Families, BIFF for CoParent Communication, Calming Upset People with EAR, Don’t Alienate the Kids!, and Splitting: Protecting Yourself While Divorcing Someone with Borderline or Narcissistic Personality Disorder. He also co-hosts the It’s All Your Fault! podcast with Megan Hunter.
Trusted by professionals across industries.
This training has great value for clinicians working with any level of conflict or dissention between parents who are navigating the waters of divorce. The focus this process provides is a gift to both providers and parents.
If you counsel families experiencing separation or divorce, this is a training that you won't want to miss. Learning to teach life skills that are valuable in any situation is the theme for both the workshop participant and for those the participant teaches.
The training was excellent! Bill is quite thorough and helps you every step of the way. I cannot wait to use this with my clients.
New Ways for Families® Counselor Training — frequently asked questions.
Who is this course for?
How is New Ways for Families® different from traditional family counseling?
Is New Ways for Families® only for high-conflict families?
Can the method be used in cases involving domestic violence, alienation, or estrangement?
Do both parents need to participate?
What is the format?
When are the live sessions?
What is included?
Is there ongoing support after the training?
Will I get continuing education credits?
Do I need a license to use New Ways for Families® in my clinical practice?
Can I train other counselors to use New Ways for Families®?
What’s the difference between Counselor Training and Coaches Training?
Do you offer discounts?
Can my court program license this?
Ready to bring New Ways for Families® into your clinical practice?
Learn a structured, skills-based counseling method developed specifically for high-conflict separation and divorce. Train directly with Bill Eddy, strengthen your approach to challenging family cases, and become eligible for licensure as a New Ways for Families® Counselor.
