Evolution in the Law of Child Custody: Part One

The law and family law in particular has a tendency of moving and evolving at glacial pace. But, much like a glacier’s movement has major consequences to the landscape around it; movements in the law can have tremendously important effects on everything around it. There is now a movement in the law to broaden the concept of parenting, and who can be considered a parent.

Recently, Drake Bennet wrote an interesting article in the Boston Globe on the notion of child custody in non-traditional families. With 21st century technology in assisted reproduction and increased acceptance of same-sex couples, many families do not resemble the family that the legal system has in mind. Today, many children are brought up with parent-like relationships with three or more adults.

Our legal system recognizes that a child can be in the custody of one or two people, but no more than that. This presumption exists because a child cannot have more than two biological parents. However, families can often be structured differently, with more than two adults having a parent-like relationship with a child. The law is often slow to adjust to changes in society, and new family arrangements can often seem out of step with the way family law judges deal with child custody issues. Changes in the way the law deals with families and children may come slowly, but such changes have happened in the past and have had dramatic consequences.

In the next part of this article, we will go into more detail about how the law of parentage has evolved in the past and where it may be heading.

Source: Boston Globe (Boston.com): Johnny has two mommies – and four dads; Drake Bennett, 10/24/2010.