An important aspect of family law that many people do not seem to understand is Judicial discretion. I hear on this page a lot that this will be looked at poorly or the judge will rule against that. A judge has absolute authority and complete discretion in their rulings. This is the primary problem. Mothers do not gain sole custody so often because that is how the law is written. The laws are written gender neutral. But because of a judges broad discretion allowed by law their personal values and beliefs will come out in their rulings. If your judge believes mothers are more important, their rulings will reflect it. The remark that got me started in writing this was; A mother cant have another man just move in Wrong! Some judges may make this a requirement, others may not. In my own case, my ex-wife left a 13 year marriage and moved in with another man immediately. The judge viewed this as a positive. I was told this created a family atmosphere for the children in one household that the other household (mine) was unable to equally provide. I have seen judges rule against stay at home fathers by saying they are unable to adequately provide, while ruling in favor of stay home mothers for having more time to provide emotionally to the childs needs. I have seen judges rule in favor of one party citing homeschooling is in the childs best interest. Others rule in favor of public school. I have seen judges rule one way over another because of a parents religious beliefs. I have seen judges, mine included, rule in direct violation of state statue. Yes, you can appeal the ruling if you have the time and resources, but if you dont, you are simply out of luck. The law as written simply will not apply in that ruling. Because until you can appeal and have the ruling that was in direct violation of a law overturned, that ruling will stand. The fact it is in violation of the law does it matter, and at least in my case while I did appeal and have it overturned a year later, there was no reprimand to the judge what-so-ever. Do not believe that because the law says this or the law says that, or it happened in this case or that case, or this is right and that is wrong it will make a difference. Maybe it will. Maybe it wont. The outcome of your case will be determined by the judge you are assigned. No other factor will carry more weight than your judges values, beliefs, and even mood. Judges in family law have absolute discretion. Its a big part of the problem. Respectfully, Thomas Fidler
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 22:26:48 +0000
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