For years, many people thought it was a given that women were going to win the custody disputes during a divorce. The court may have thought that men were the ones earning the money and that money could be replaced through child support; however, time was a priceless asset that couldn’t be replaced.
Since women were the ones raising the children, they were the ones winning custody. In recent years, the rate of men winning custody of the children during the divorce process has been rising. Here are a few reasons why.
More Fathers are Staying at Home
There has been an increase in the rate of men who are becoming stay-at-home fathers. This doesn’t mean that men aren’t working as often as they used to. Instead, this is a product of an increase in the number of fathers who are working at home.
Furthermore, more women are having careers of their own and acting as the primary breadwinner for their family. Because of this shift, fathers are increasingly involved in the lives of their children. Judges are recognizing that this is important and have been awarding custody to fathers at a higher rate.
Fathers are Getting Remarried
Unfortunately, the divorce rate is high. On the other hand, people are also getting remarried at a high rate. This means that even if fathers have custody of their children, this doesn’t mean that there won’t be another person involved in the lives of the children down the road.
If fathers get remarried, then there is a second adult in the house to help raise the children, help them with their homework, run errands, and simply spend time with the children. This is an important factor that judges are taking into consideration.
The Role of the Father is Important
In prior years, judges simply didn’t recognize that having a father in the lives of the children was every bit as important as having a mother in the picture. This trend has shifted in recent years. Because research studies have been performed that demonstrate the importance of having a father in the lives of the children, judges have been swayed by this information and have been awarding custody to the father in cases where it is appropriate. This means that fathers should fight for custody of their children. They have a shot at winning.
Because the landscape of child custody disputes has been shifting, everyone should take the opportunity to hire an experienced attorney during any child custody matters. Men should know that they have the opportunity to win custody of their children. On the other hand, women shouldn’t assume that a judge is going to award custody to them based on their gender alone. Nobody wants to lose custody of their loved ones. Contact an experienced attorney for assistance today.