California parents going through a divorce may wonder if there is evidence showing bias on the part of the courts when deciding parental rights. Many fathers fear that a judge’s bias will favor the mother, especially when it comes to child support.
In the past, traditional families had the mother raise the children, and the father was a provider. This meant that the mother stayed home, and the father went out to work. When there was a divorce, the automatic assumption was that the mother would take on the bulk of the responsibility of child rearing, and the father would continue to be the one to provide financial support.
In modern society, things are different. Many judges grant fathers custody of their children if this is clearly in the best interests of the children. This does not mean that there is not bias in child custody situations.
There may be a bias about father’s perceived inability to adequately care for their children. Some argue that fathers are not nurturing enough toward their children. Others argue that father’s schedules do not provide them enough time to care for children. Still, others say that fathers do not have enough knowledge about child rearing.
Although perceptions are changing, fathers need to avoid complacency in their custody battle. The biases that might influence the court do not to disappear overnight, and each judge will have their own opinion about what they feel is in the best interests of the children.
When a father is battling for child custody, he may benefit from the assistance of a family law attorney. An attorney might prepare the father on how to present himself in court. Attorneys may be able to help the father argue to the judge why their having custody is in the best interests of their children.
