Since the late 1970s there has been substantial change in the judicial system regarding child custody hearings (Symons, 2010). The end of the 20th century sparked a public demand for more custodial options including joint physical custody (refers to the day-to-day care of children), joint legal custody (refers to a parents rights and responsibilities regarding major decisions involving children) and a general increase in paternal involvement in children’s lives post-divorce (Symons, 2010; Atwood, 2007), 1982 marked the first year where a father in North America was granted sole custody (Amato, 2001). As recently as 1970, there were custodial cases granting sole custody to mothers stating that mothers make the best parents simply because they are mothers (O’Connell, 2007). Today we see many custodial options that range far beyond the traditional scope of sole custodian mothers and fathers with visitation rights or financial responsibilities (American Psychological Association, 2010). Juby, Marcil-Gratton and LeBourdais (2005) found that in Canada, sole custody awarded to fathers remains stable around 10% while joint physical and legal custody range between 25% and 50%. Although divorce has declined slightly since the 1990s, it is estimated that 33% of all marriages in Canada will end in divorce (Statistics Canada, 2006). Today, approximately half of divorces involve children (Symons, 2010); this is important to note because it could lead to an elevated number of youth exposed to excessive levels of parental conflict during litigation. The goal of the judicial system is to determine who will take responsibility for children while minimizing the harm experienced by children exposed to high levels of conflict (American Law Ins... ... middle of paper ... ...int Committee on Child Custody and Access. Retrived from http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=1031529&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=36&Ses=1&File=6 Saunders, D. G., Tolman, R. M., & Faller, K. C. (2013). Factors associated with child custody evaluators’ recommendations in cases of intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Psychology, 27, 473-483. Statistics Canada. (2006). 2006 Census. Retrieved from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/start-debut-eng.html Symons, D. K. (2010). A review of the practice and science of child custody and access assessment in the United States and Canada. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 3, 267-273. Warshak, R. A. (2007). Parenting by the clock: The best interest of the child standard, judicial discretion, and the American Law Institutes “approximation rule”. Child Development Perspectives, 1, 119-125.
A state that undertakes custody of a child is declaring that it can do a better job providing protection. This system is a powerful agent of support, providing positive nurturing environments that enable a child to reach his or her potential. Nonetheless, when children suffer additional abuse in the system, this government intervention should be questioned.
Each of the 50 states has an agency responsible for protecting children. In Los Angeles, California, this agency is known as DCFS (Department of Children and Families Services). The Los Angeles Department of Family Services has recently made the news after a class action law suites ranging in the millions has left locals wondering whether or not DCFS is actually protecting the children they take into their custody. With the increasing number of cases each day, concerns are being raised as to whether the rights of parents are being violated. It is common knowledge that there have been serious accuracy flaws resulting in the wrongful termination of many parents’ rights. However, little is being done to fix these errors and give parents their children back. Child Protective Services is the most needed yet unwanted Agencies in each state. While a system is necessary to intervene and protect children who are abused, there are speculation on the procedures and policy the state uses. While interventi...
In the United States today more than one-half of all marriages end in divorce. The purpose of this paper is to examine the reason why women have typically received custody of the children far more often than the fathers. In order to better understand child custody one must first examine how fathers have often times been left out of the picture, and conversely why mothers have had such hard times raising children on their own. This paper will first examine the perspective of a father who has lost custody of his children.
The concept behind home visitation as a coping strategy to curb child abuse is to alleviate it before it happens or to find signs of child abuse by having public health works conduct visits to every hou...
In child custody cases, the goal of the court is to resolve the disagreements in regards to the “parenting plan” between the parents. As stated, every child, parent, and situation is different. When a child is developing, the needs of the child might change accordingly (Mercer, 2009). I...
Child custody evaluations cover multiple issues such as custody, maintenance, support, valuation, visitation, relocation, and termination of parental rights. There are multiple forms of custody that can result from a child custody evaluation. First is physical custody which is defined as “how much time a child spends with each parent, if the parents share physical custody” (Costanzo & Krauss, 2012). Another form of custody is legal custody, which gives a parent the authority to decide certain influential factors in the child’s life (Costanzo & Krauss, 2012). Joint legal custody is also an option. Another form of custody is sole custody which is defined as “one parent has legal and physical custody while the other typically has agreed upon some rights to visit the child at regular intervals” (Costanzo & Krauss, 2012). “Most custody decisions – about 90% - are made without resorting to litigation” (Costanzo & Krauss, 2012). “Estimates of actual custody arrangements in...
With the increase of divorce and the number of children being born out of wedlock, parental alienation continues to grow. With custody laws changing, allowing for equal opportunities for both parents to raise their children, and fathers beginning to fight for their right to be involved, not just every other weekend fathers, custody battles have become increasingly fierce. Another factor contributing to this is the fact that many courts consider who will be more willing to encourage the child to have a heathly and continuing relationship with the other parent.
The choice of this paper is to discuss the best practices of conducting child custody evaluations and the diverse roles of the child custody evaluators and the counselor. Mental health counselors are called upon to help with the plethora of custody cases in the judicial system for evaluations. Family courts counselors provide invaluable services as forensic experts or with treatment. Due to the uniqueness of each instance it is imperative that the mental health counselors comprehend the diversity in each instance. The counselors must also be able to practice ethics and legal to prevent the ramification in malpractice.
Forty-one percent of a couple’s first marriage ends in divorce, according to mckinleyirvin.com. Also, Seventy-five percent of children with divorced parents live with their mother while forty-three percent of children growing up nationally, are raised without their fathers. Many factors leads to the decision of the child’s custody, although mothers usually win. However, what if both parents are capable of providing a decent life for the child? Unhealthy relationships between parents can question the true intent behind child custody. After reading Pop Quiz 7 in, “Octet”, from Brief Interviews with Hideous Men by David Foster Wallace, parents used money, vengeance, and love in the battle for child custody. Similar to the situation
In retrospect, joint custody causes children to obtain the best childhood possible and also provides stability within the mental and physical aspects of a child’s family
Jolivet, Kendra Randall. "The Psychological Impact Of Divorce On Children: What Is A Family Lawyer To Do?." American Journal Of Family Law 25.4 (2011): 175-183. Academic Search Elite. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
Sinha, M. (2012). Family violence in Canada: A statistical profile, 2010. Juristat. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 85-002-X. Retrieved from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/85-002-x/2012001/article/11643-eng.pdf
Child maltreatment is a widespread issue that affects thousands of children every year. There are four common types of child maltreatment; sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse and neglect. All of these types of abuse are very serious and can have many consequences for the children and families. The most common consequence of severe child maltreatment is the removal of that child from their home (Benbenishty, Segev, Surkis, and Elias, 2002). Most social workers trying to determine the likelihood of removal evaluate the type and severity of abuse, as well as the child’s relationship with their parents (Benbenishty et al., 2002). When children are removed from their homes there are many options of alternative housing. The places they are allowed to live are a relative’s home, foster home, or a group home. In a study of children removed from their homes, 68% went to a foster home rather than a relative or another form of alternative housing (Faller, 1991). Reunification with a parent is the most common goal that is set forth by Child Protective Services even though recurrent abuse is likely to happen based upon the prior type of abuse and the age of the child (Connell et al., 2009). Child maltreatment is becoming a prevalent problem that has numerous consequences for both the child and family.
Child custody battles do not always have to be negative and create emotional conflict in a child’s life. When it comes to a custody battle, parents need to learn to keep their feelings about the other parent away from the child. If the parents are able to stay amiable and cordial to one another, the child will see that it is not going to be all bad. Dr. Judith Myers-Wall, associate professor and Extension specialist in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies, and Nithyakala Karruppaswamy, co-writer, advise parents going through custody battles to give children information. Myers-Wall and Karruppawamy (2013) say, “Children adjust bet...
Divorce is a growing epidemic in Canada and the United States. It affects both parties involved, being the spouses, and also has a profound affect on children of the marriage. Recently our government has been revising the old divorce act. It was apparent that it was time to revise the act because it did not properly protect the children from being caught in the middle of things.