A Minnesota woman was recently asked to join a new national advocacy group for equally shared parenting. Leading Women for Shared Parenting (www.lw4sp.org), was founded in May in Massachusetts, and launched officially on Father’s Day.
Many people support equally shared parenting. A 2010 study, published in the journal of Psychology, Public Policy and Law, found no statistical discrepancy between genders when it came to advocating shared parenting. Both men and women most frequently responded that courts should award equally shared custody provisions in several different theoretical cases involving child custody after divorce.
Some divorced moms, and a majority of divorced dads, discover themselves with “joint custody,” an agreement that creates an instant power disparity as one parent may be limited to child-time every other weekend and one weeknight. If a court awards joint legal custody, both parents have input with respect to decisions on important issues such as the child’s medical care, education, religious upbringing and extracurricular activities. However, the child will primarily reside with one parent. The goal of shared parenting is for both partners to have an equal investment in three main areas: home, career and child rearing. Both should also have equal time for leisure and recreation as well.
There is also a common belief that specific responsibilities in a marriage too often defaults to gender because couples don’t take the time to work things out and talk things through. In a shared parenting situation, the husband and wife would work equal hours, spend equal time with their children, and take equal responsibility for their home. Neither of their careers would take priority. For example, both would be equally likely to go grocery shopping, do household chores, or go to the mechanic and get new tires for the car.
An equally shared parenting bill passed in both the Minnesota House and Senate in 2012. However, it was not signed into law, because of a concern about securing evenly balanced time mainly with the most difficult divorces.
Whether you are dealing with a situation involving a Minnesota divorce, custody or child support, hiring an attorney that has the experience and courtroom skills required to represent your interests in divorce court is very important.
Source: Star Tribune, “Rosenblum: Divorced dads get big gift from fired-up moms” Gail Rosenblum, Jun. 08, 2013
