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The Show-Me State is one of almost two dozen states in the Union that give divorced fathers equal time with their children, according to a recent study.
The Custody X Change survey looked at the typical custody arrangements for each state. Missouri and nineteen other states divide parenting time 50/50 between fathers and mothers. Study author Ben Coltrin said they represent a nationwide trend. However, he cautioned that the 50/50 figure is just an average. Outside factors, like geographic separation, domestic abuse, and criminal convictions, may affect these numbers significantly. Mr. Coltrin also noted that politics plays a role. In “red states,” divorced dads see their children 400 fewer hours a year than their counterparts in “blue states.”
Ten states give divorced fathers less than 25 percent access to their children. At 21.8 percent, Tennessee finished last in the survey, followed by Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Illinois.
Some people around the country were surprised by the results of this study, but St. Louis. MO family law attorney Larry S. Buccero was not one of them. “When California adopted an every other weekend joint custody law in the 1970s, many people thought it was the best thing since sliced bread,” he remarked. “And at the time, it was indeed revolutionary. Many states gave basically no rights at all to divorced fathers. But a lot has changed in the last forty years.”
Usually, a court will order babies and toddlers to spend almost all of their time with the mother. If the father has little experience with babies, his visits may be supervised. With regard to younger children, some of the research still suggests that they need to “live” with one parent and “visit” the other one. However, these concerns do not apply to older children and teenagers. So, to maximize contact between the parents, many busy families look for innovative solutions.
Mr. Buccero said many of his clients ask about the “empty nest” arrangement. Traditionally, the children moved back and forth between the parents’ houses. That works well in many situations, for example, if the parents do not get along well or live rather far apart. But the empty nest is gaining popularity.
Basically, the parents switch houses and the children stay put. Many people swap houses biweekly, but just about any 50-50 arrangement will do. Judges like this arrangement because it fosters stability, and family law judges like consistency. Children like it because they stay in their own beds and in their own neighborhoods with their regular friends. Divorced dads like it because they can save money on housing. Instead of a multiple-bedroom dwelling with a large living area, they can get by with something smaller.
The empty nest obviously only works if the parents live close together and get along fairly well. Mom and Dad do not need to be friends, but they do need to respect one another’s privacy and space.
Release ID: 382366