Are family courts biased against fathers?

As a father who is going through a divorce, you may be worried about losing time with your children. After all, your main goal for the divorce may be to ensure that you get to continue to have a close relationship with them.

As such, you may be worried if someone suggests to you that the court is going to be biased against you. You may have heard the rumor that courts favor giving mothers custody of their children, while they will simply ask fathers to pay child support. Is this true?

Things have changed over time

There was a time in which courts preferred giving mothers sole custody. They were taught to be better caregivers. This idea has persisted in public knowledge, which is why people still reference it.

However, things have changed over time so that there is far more equality. Part of the reason for this is that it’s been discovered just how important a father‘s role is in a child’s life. It’s critical for these relationships to continue.

Likewise, courts tend to focus on the best interests of the child, not the best interests of the parents. Since experts now believe that it’s best for children to see both of their parents, courts are going to err in this direction unless there is significant evidence that they should do something else. Generally speaking, there has to be evidence that the child would be unsafe being with a certain parent in order for the court to revoke that person’s rights to custody.

Considering your options

The child custody process is very important and it can certainly get complicated. As you go through this, in order to avoid common myths and take steps to protect time with your children, be sure you know about all of your legal options.