Child Custody and Support Laws Should Be Changed Essay

Present child custody and support laws do not make any sense. They often penalize hard working parents and alienate parents from children they love. These laws must be re-examined and revised so that the best interest of children be served at all times. John Smith lives with his new wife and her four children, ages 4 to 14. He is the only father that these youngsters have known, and he provides for them in all the ways that a father must. John Smith must pay $1,000 to his ex-wife, a woman he divorced 12 years ago, but with whom he had two children, ages 14 and 15. He barely sees his children, and when he does, the situation is strained and the children act like they would rather be somewhere else. John believes that he would rather have had primary custody of his children: he would have participated more actively in their upbringing, and he would have stayed closer to them, and he would have made a better parent that their mother. He resents that he was not given the opportunity to be closer to his children; instead, the courts had given custody to her; she was their mother, and that was all that counted. Now, they are almost strangers to him. John is angry that the system is holding him hostage to his ex-wife by mandating that he pay her $1,000 a month, even though they’ve been divorced for 12 years, even though she refuses to seek employment to contribute to her children’s support, even though he must struggle to make ends meet with his new family. John Smith is one of 3 million divorced men who have had very little control over decisions of custody and child support. These men feel that as implemented, these laws favor the mothers and force men into choosing to become deadbeat dads. Show status of situation: how many children live in divorced homes; what percentage of das get custody; show how in a typical situation, mothers get custody, and fathers paay support. This situation must change, laws must be designed to treat all equitably and fairly, and in this particular case, the primary concern should be the best interest of the children in divorce situations. I.Custody decisions should be based on who is the better parent II.As much as possible, both parents should have equal access to their children III.Child support rules should demand equally from both parents IV.Rules should allow non-custodial parent enough finances to live his/her life V.Payment should be linked to visitation, etc