A Father's Right

A Father's Right

When it comes to the rights of father's within the American judicial system, it appears that the dads often time get the short end of the stick. It's often assumed, outside of divorce court where there are more mitigations involved, that parental rights are given majorly to the mother. Some may say that it's because mother's are more nurturing and may have more time to spend with the children but a shift in household financial responsibilities have placed women in the same bracket as men when it comes to, at home availability. Many women now work full time jobs, which poses the question, in the matter of parental custody, should both parents receive equal time with the children? 

Growing up as a child, when you had a friend living within a one parent home, it was usually the child living primarily with the mother. We would often refer to the father as the 'weekend dad' without considering the notion that he never had a choice in the matter.  Unmarried couples who decide to go their separate ways are subject to the courts visitation determination if an agreement hasn't been reached amongst themselves.

The judge will assess the following factors in determining a custodial arrangement:

• The child’s relationship with each parent
• Each parent’s health and ability to care for the child
• The child’s relationship with each parent’s community, household, and other family members
• If one parent acted as the child’s primary caregiver in the past
• The child’s wishes, if the child is deemed mature enough to express an opinion
• Any history of domestic violence or abuse

In many cases, both parents have similar capabilities to provide the aforementioned but it still remains that father's usually come out on the short end of the stick. Nationwide, a father is likely to receive 35% of child custody time. In some instances, where both parents can offer the same support, emotions take over and bad decisions are made, including wrongfully filing a restraining order. Many judges who grant restraining orders on a parent, aren't very likely to then offer up joint custody to them. 

In an effort to combat the disadvantages that father's receive when it comes custody and child support, organizations have been created to assist with legal council and emotional support. I've listed the links below.

https://www.familylawrights.net/illinois/fathers-rights/
https://fatherssupportcenter.org/
https://www.dadsrights.com/

For those father's who may be experiencing a difficult time in court trying to gain access to your children, become as knowledgeable as you can before hiring an attorney. Refer to some of the resources available to you so that when you're ready to pursue legal counsel, you're prepared. This can be very cost effective in the long run.

If after reading this, you're able to provide some form of advice to another father, please  comment below. Let's keep this conversation going until something changes. 

Davina S.  


**resources: mckinleyirvin.com; familyfindlaw.com