Does DSM-IV have equivalents for the parental alienation syndrome (PAS) diagnosis?

Child custody evaluators commonly find themselves confronted with resistance when they attempt to use the term parental alienation syndrome (PAS) in courts of law. Although convinced that the patient being evaluating suffers from the disorder, they often find that the attorneys who represent alienated parents, although they agree with the diagnosis, discourage use of the term in the evaluators' reports and testimony. Most often, they request that the evaluator merely use the term parental alienation (PA). On occasion they will ask whether other DSM-IV diagnoses may be applicable. The purpose of this article is to elucidate the reasons for the reluctance to use the PAS diagnosis and the applicability of PA, as well as current DSM-IV substitute diagnoses.