I’ve been hearing about a couple of people who either have full custody of their kids after a divorce or no custody/contact at all. In both cases, the moms have the kids. It got me wondering how custody really works because I know things can seem fine on the outside but be really unhealthy behind closed doors. I know one guy who has been fighting for the right to see his kids, appears to be a decent person, and is now remarried to someone else who also seems respectable. But he doesn’t have any contact with his kids. Can a spouse really just take the kids and somehow get custody without a good reason? I’m also curious about a couple who was married for a long time and has teens. I’m not sure what the situation is, but it seems odd that the wife would have full custody without something going wrong. I’ve never been in any of these situations, but I can’t imagine trying to restrict my husband from seeing the kids if things went sideways. How does that work? I figured courts usually prefer to have both parents involved, so I’m just trying to understand what goes on.
Yeah, courts usually lean towards split custody unless there’s a really good reason for one parent to have no custody at all.
Leah said:
Yeah, courts usually lean towards split custody unless there’s a really good reason for one parent to have no custody at all.
That makes sense. So it sounds like there’s usually more to the story.
@Shay
For sure. Courts don’t just take away custody without a serious issue.
I think courts typically won’t take custody away unless something really bad happens. At the very least, they usually give supervised visitation.
Rio said:
I think courts typically won’t take custody away unless something really bad happens. At the very least, they usually give supervised visitation.
Does that mean if the kids are teens, they can actually choose where they want to live?
@Alexis
Yeah, once they reach a certain age, they have a say in which parent they want to live with.
It’s pretty normal for courts to prefer both parents being involved unless there are issues like abuse or neglect.
Indie said:
It’s pretty normal for courts to prefer both parents being involved unless there are issues like abuse or neglect.
So if something bad did happen, wouldn’t there be legal trouble for the parent?
@Bran
Not always. Sometimes issues can be handled in family court without resulting in criminal charges.
I think a lot can depend on the circumstances. I’ve seen cases where one parent might protect the other from facing charges even if something happened.
Paisley said:
I think a lot can depend on the circumstances. I’ve seen cases where one parent might protect the other from facing charges even if something happened.
That’s interesting. So, the spouse can choose not to press charges?
@Valentina
Exactly, and sometimes custody decisions can be based on allegations rather than solid proof.
I mean, it’s good to remember that we often don’t know what goes on behind closed doors. Each situation can be pretty unique.
Sienna said:
I mean, it’s good to remember that we often don’t know what goes on behind closed doors. Each situation can be pretty unique.
Right, and things can seem fine on the surface while being totally different underneath.
@Reed
Yeah, it’s a good reminder to not jump to conclusions about anyone else’s life.