Common Myths Regarding Child Custody that Fathers Often Misunderstood

Every divorce story has generally different set of circumstances to be treated fairly  in property, money and children. Divorce situations that involve children might end up emotionally heated up and there tends to be a bit of miscommunication that could grow into something big and difficult problem. The said miscommunication will tend to get proliferated because of the invention of the internet and social networking. In many cases, parents do not understand what the state courts want in determining the child's best interest. If you have problem regarding child support or child custody, you can contact an Orange County divorce attorney to help you go through with it. 

There are common myths involving child support and the issues which after all are not true. If you are father, who is fighting for child support or child custody, you better have to take a look the following common myths.

• The mother will always get the child custody.  This has been one of the most common myths in the divorce process and the almost true situation in the most states of America. This myth was supported by another myth that mothers are more capable in providing the needs of young children compared to fathers. However, as the law evolves, and lots have been revised and amended, it is no longer true that mothers are always the better parent that they would automatically receive the custody of the child. These days, mothers still get the custody in most divorce cases. That is because mothers are the primary caregivers of the child even if they are working. Moreover, if the child is very young, say 7 years old and below, the mother is more likely to get the custody of the child given the bond or attachment of the mother to the young child. This does not mean that fathers are incapable of rearing the young child. It is just that the parental roles especially when the child is still young will go automatically to the mother.

• The child support finances must be spent directly on children. Again, not true. The child support money is expected to be utilized on the child's basic needs like food, housing, clothing and education. Moreover, the child support finances can also be used in paying child-related bills like telephone bills and child care when the parent is working. The courts do not require to prove anything regarding the child support payments on where the money goes, except in the cases when the child's needs are not met. Meanwhile, the child support may order funds for the specific needs of the child like school fees, medical expenses or day care. The child support payer is allowed to pay directly the fees to the applicable school.

• With regards to joint custody, there is no required child support to be owed by either parent. Every state is different, however in most cases, child support obligations will not be erased even when both parents have equal custody. The courts in California consider the length of time spent with each of the parent and specifically, the child support obligations will not decrease even if the time spent by one parent with the child increases. It is non-negotiable.

• If the ex-spouse gets remarried, the child support arrears will be decreased. When your ex-spouse gets remarried, this does not affect the amount of child support money you are required to owe for the child. As the biological parent, the court sees you are still responsible for parenting the child and in most instances, the courts will not allow to reduce the child support arrears.

• If the ex-spouse gets remarried, the child support the other spouse will receive should be increased. This same is true with the above child support myth. It is the responsibility of the birth parents to provide the child support. In general, the family courts will use the biological parents income in calculating the child support arrears and not the income of the new spouse of the ex.

The above are some of the common myths that need to be corrected especially if you are the affected parent and you feel that your right for child custody is being denied. You can fight your right with the best lawyers of Yourlawcenter.com and get back the custody of your child that you feel you are most capable of.