Many men are unwilling to accept the visitation and child-support arrangements of yesterday and are embracing the opportunity to spend time with their kids after divorce. Changing attitudes are helping to pave the way to more equitable arrangements.
Legislatures in many states are rethinking child custody laws amid the latest scientific research showing that fathers are important to their children’s physical and emotional well-beings.
Recent changes in custody arrangements are shown in a new study based on court records in Wisconsin, published in the journal, Demography. Researchers reviewed all divorce records involving minors from 1986 to 2008, totaling 9,873 cases. In that period, mothers receiving sole custody dropped from 80% to 42%, while instances of equal shared custody increased from 5% to 27% and unequal shared custody rose from 3% to 18%. An additional 9% are fathers with sole custody, and the remaining 4% is split custody with multiple-child families and different arrangements for each child.
If you have questions regarding child custody or divorce, please contact the Law Office of Ronald Bell. We have over 25 years experience helping families navigate child custody and visitation matters. We are here to help.
Source: Detroit Free Press, ‘More dads demand equal custody rights, reject child-support arrangements of yesterday’, June 14, 2014