A British court recently ruled in favor of a father by removing his two sons—ages 11 and 14—from their mother’s custody and placing them under his care. Judge Laura Harris, the judge presiding over the case, stated that the mother had “significantly failed” her children with her permissive kind of parenting.
British national daily newspaper The Guardian ran an article on the court’s decision. Here is an excerpt:
A woman has lost custody of her two sons after a judge said she had “significantly failed” the children through permissive parenting, accepting the argument that she acted “more like a friend than a parent” to the two boys.
The judge Laura Harris ruled that the boys, aged 11 and 14, should live with their father, who had “demonstrated far better insight” into their needs and who was more in favour of “structure, boundaries and discipline”.
The boys’ behaviour towards adults showed a lack of discipline and structure, said Harris. “I consider the mother’s parenting has been permissive, and, although the court must be tolerant of different standards of parenting, I consider the permissive parenting in this case has caused the children harm.”
Indeed, gone are the days when courts will simply grant the mother custody over the kids after a divorce. Today, so as to ensure the well-being of a child or children, family courts both in the U.K. and U.S. follow standards and consider several factors, including parenting style, age of the children, and each parent’s living situation, to decide whether to grant child custody to both parents (joint custody) or to one parent only (sole custody).
In the U.S., the “best interest of the child” standard is used by judges, particularly for disputed child custody cases, and depending on the state where you reside, some components of the said standard may vary. For instance, if you’re planning to consult an experienced Gallatin family lawyer to help with child custody matters, you’ll eventually learn about parenting plans, a written outline of how divorcing parents will care for their children, and how Tennessee courts determine which parent will spend more time with the children, typically appointed by the court as the “primary residential parent”.
A knowledgeable Gallatin, TN lawyer like Kenneth J. Phillips – Attorney At Law will explain the details of your case with confidentiality, care, and compassion that you and your family deserve. He will help ensure that you’re on track on what to do in a child custody case that will truly be in your child’s best interest.
(Source: Mother’s permissive parenting harmed sons, court rules in custody battle, The Guardian, February 17, 2014)
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