Father Custody Rights: What You Need To Know

Determining a father’s custody rights is often a challenging issue for spouses and the court. Most commonly, custody for a mother or father is determined in context of a child’s best interest.

In most of the country the “traditional American marriage” is still commonly thought of as a husband and father who works full time, and a wife and mother who either works less, or not at all in order to provide care for the children.

While these norms are changing and evolving at a rapid pace, that vast majority of court cases in which father custody rights are at issue are still between a man working full time and a woman working part time or not at all.

If father custody rights are an issue in your divorce, here are some key takeaways that will help you understand what will be the determining factors.
 

Work Schedule

Fathers with full-time jobs and children not yet in school have a practical hurdle to overcome when seeking father custody rights. In these cases, providing quality time is the most important factor rather than quantity.

For full-time working dads, it is important to demonstrate and commit to quality time with their children as often as possible. Evenings, weekends, and holidays are crucial to maintaining regular contact with children, and missing such opportunities will not be looked upon favorably by the court.

In situations where both a father and mother are working full time and have similar schedules, father custody rights will be determined by additional factors such as income and living situation.
 

Parent/Child Bond

Obtaining preferable father custody rights can be heavily influenced by time spent with children prior to a divorce. If a father has demonstrably not spent much time with his children over the course of the marriage, sole or even 50/50 joint custody will be difficult to obtain.

The best hope for improving father custody rights in this case is to reaffirm your commitment to your children and begin spending as much time with them as you can, and making that time into quality bonding time.

By upholding that commitment a good family law attorney can go back to a judge after sufficient time has passed and argue for improved father custody rights.
 

Parental Fitness

One of the most difficult and dangerous situations for any divorce is if one parent is unwilling or unfit to take care of their children.

For fathers who believe that their former spouse is unwilling or unfit to care for their children, there are a number of options available to help prove this in court. Requesting a psychological evaluation, asking the court for a formal child custody investigation, or providing evidence of your ex-spouse’s unfitness can help your case.
 

Always Hire An Attorney

If you are seeking father custody rights, it’s critical to hire a competent and experienced family law attorney who can guide you through the divorce and child custody process.

Every father has questions, uncertainties, and strong emotions about their divorce and getting custody of their children. The best thing you can do is find the right attorney to fight for you and make sure your voice is heard.