Child Custody Laws & Rights for Men in California
Men facing divorce or other child custody proceedings may think they have little or no rights in the California family law court system. The good news is that men have the same rights as women in California courts. Gaining joint or sole custody of children just takes the right information and some diligent work to present the facts and evidence needed by the courts. Below are the most common unknown rights to fathers in child custody cases in California.
Knowing the Law
California Family Code 3020(b) specifically states that: “The Legislature finds and declares that it is the public policy of this state to assure that children have frequent and continuing contact with both parents after the parents have separated or dissolved their marriage, or ended their relationship, and to encourage parents to share the rights and responsibilities of child rearing in order to effect this policy, except where the contact would not be in the best interest of the child, as provided in Section 3011.” This means that mothers and fathers have the same rights to equal time with their children, if it is in the best interest of the children. So it’s logical that the court will ask for proof or evidence that spending time with the father is in the best interests of the child.
Equal parenting time
The first question a court will ask both parents is how much time he or she can devote to caring for their children. This is not just a question of work schedules, but also the age of the children. For example, a father that works a traditional 40 hour per week schedule but has older teenagers (15-17 year olds) and can devote evenings and weekends to the children’s care should consider a joint physical custody and close to 50/50 arrangement. That is because the children can often care for themselves for the very short period of time between school and the father’s parenting time. And conversely, a father who is working 40 or more hours per week, but has very young children, may not have as much time to devote to the around the clock care these youngsters need, and a less than 50/50 custody arrangement may be in the best interests of the child. But don’t worry, available time isn’t the only factor courts examine.
Equal parental decisions
Even if the time spent with your children is not split evenly, you can and should seek joint legal custody. Joint legal custody means that both parents are equally involved in the decision making process concerning the children. This includes all the major decisions regarding the health, education, safety and welfare of the children. Joint legal custody should be a priority and is appropriate in all custody cases except those that involve serious parental conflict, domestic violence, child abuse, substance abuse or those where parents are simply unable to co-parent.
In California, mothers are not given any special privileges or advantages over fathers, so if you are facing a mother who causes serious conflict, will not co-parent, has alienated or conditioned the children against you or any of the other similar issues, it is likely not in your children’s best interest to have such a parent share in the decision making process and you should petition for sole legal custody.
What’s next for you, dad?
Contacting an experienced family lawyer like Richard Jacinto is a good start to get your child custody case on the right track. Even if your case has already started and you believe it is not going well, our attorneys can sit down with you, evaluate where your current progress and help get your case in the right direction.
