Moms in Divorce: Know Your Maternal Rights Before You File for Divorce
In the past, courts applied a maternal preference in fashioning visitation and child custody orders. That is no longer the case. By statute, Courts are now required to look at the parties equally, irrespective of gender. This is a tacit, legislative acknowledgement that children typically need participation from both parents as they grow and develop. Generally, this includes providing mothers and fathers the ability to be involved in issues concerning the child’s education, welfare and health as well as recognizing that each child has a right to meaningful contact with both parents. To this end, state statutes now generally express that, in the eyes of the law, and in Courts throughout the greater Kansas City metro area, women and men receive equal treatment as parents in the context of constructing a custody arrangement and visitation schedule.