For decades, the courts operated under two basic premises. The first premise assumed that children benefit from a stable home more than they do with sharing equal time between parents. Second, that stable home should be the mothers because children need their mother more than their father. The first premise was widely adopted and underpinned most child custody arrangements. The second premise, while not explicitly laid down, was a common presumption among many judges.
Avoid parenting plans inspired by strong negative emotions
If you and your child's other parent have opted to separate or divorce, you are likely struggling with a host of challenging emotions right now. Many of those emotions may be tied to the idea of transitioning your child from a two-parent household to two households each inhabited by single parents. There is no question that this transition will not always be easy, and you have every reason to be processing strong emotions at present.
Some statistics on child support payments
Child support is a great idea in theory. It forces parents to share in the responsibility of raising their children. It prevents parents from skipping out on their financial duties to their children. But child support is a complicated picture. It is not always enforced, nor are the amounts always given. When both parents agree, the process proceeds smoothly. But rarely do parents agree.
