Dad looking for custody

bobsduncle

Hi,
I am considering looking for custody of my daughter, my wife and i are divorced. I have strong grounds for applying but I am still a bit apprehensive. (we divorced but the issue of custody of our daughter was not settled, and we have all had to live together since then so where our daughter lives has not had to be resolved, until now).
Would love to hear of anyone else's experiences.
Thanks.

Woodward

Not to be pessimistic but my friend had to fight for 8 years before he got custody of his daughter despite his wife putting him in a coma after years of domestic abuse, the daughter telling the judge how violent her mother is and the mothers boyfriend hitting the child in the courthouse. Sexism is alive and well in the family courts. Men are perceived to be inferior parents and women automatically to be angels. I'm not saying you dont have a chance, but be prepared for a long and painful battle

bobsduncle

hi woodward,
thanks for posting.
i realise that it is tough for fathers to get custody, and my circumstances are not as extreme as the your friend's, but i feel i have to try as i feel its what is in my daughter's best interests as well as my own.
i appreciate your input anyway.

username123

The only case I know personally where the father got custody was where the mother became a heroin addict and neglected the child on many occasions. The father tried to get custody a few times but was denied by courts until such a time that he had a number of years of history of missed access arrangement, social services involved because of neglect, the mother forgetting to collect the child after access, the child found in the street with a needle hanging off the sticky part of the nappy etc..

Woodward

Just to clarify my friend was the victim of the years of domestic abuse, he never laid a hand on her