Unless you’re living in a hole, not on Facebook, and not sensitive to over aggressive marketing techniques you probably noticed that Father’s Day was Sunday. Fathers are appreciated for their monster under the bed battling skills, spider squishing skills, and (in my dad’s case) mad dance skills and killer HTML skills. Whether you were a father by choice or by unexpected circumstances, you are a father nonetheless. It is wrongly assumed that fathers aren’t really given fair treatment when it comes to their children in court. This is not always the case. Father’s need to listen up because here’s three things you should know about being Father in the Court System:
1. Fathers CAN get custody, too! The Tender Years Doctrine that mothers have relied on for years and years stating that they are the number one best parent to raise their child due to them being the mother is not really used that much anymore in most courts. You see, with feminism on the rise and women going out into the workforce, the view on both men and women is changing by the court system. Fathers are seen as equals to their children, and not just the second in command money maker. The trend today is shared custody and shared time. Fathers, whether they really like it or not, are supposed to be Susie homemaker along with Mr. Fix it! We take the position that unless something pushes otherwise, children are at their best when both of their parents are equally involved in their lives.
2. Pay your Child Support! There are no excuses. I don’t care if the woman is a gold digging money grubbing demon, you should be paying that child support if you are ordered to do so. That money, whether she knows it or not, is for your children. That money is not hers to spend on lipo, and it’s not yours to withhold. You need to pay it like you’re ordered to do so that you are always in the right. There is a Courtroom here in Jefferson County with a board of excuses for why people are not paying their child support. Every time there is a new one, the Judge will add it to his board. Why? Because he feels that if a man isn’t doing his job as a father, and paying child support for his child when he has been Ordered to, his bad excuses should be ridiculed. Tip: If you aren’t paying child support because you can’t afford it, do NOT show up to Court in a Lexus.
3. Be Active as a Father! Don’t be a doormat. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard a father say that he has been denied visitation for years and he’s been waiting years to file for visitation. If it were important to him, he would have shown up to court before now to make it known that he was not getting to see his children. As a Father, you should make sure you’re on the birth certificate, that you are given court ordered visitation or custody of your child, and that the other side is following that Order. Make any and all attempts you can to have visitation with your child, and if it is denied, document, then go see any attorney! The last thing I want to hear is that she denied you visitation, and you haven’t seen your children in years. It makes me think that your child isn’t important enough to you to fight for the opportunity to see them grow up!!!