Courts are not suppose to factor in gender when making a child custody decision. Read more about him on his Linkedin profile. The “primary caregiver” is the parent who took care of the child the most before the custody hearing. Your Questions? "An extra half day with a child each week amounts to nearly an extra month of time over the course of a year.". University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. LegalMatch, Market "The legal system is set up to believe that judges are superhuman logical thinkers and fair decision-makers," Miller said. Estate "Judges as susceptible to gender bias as laypeople -- and sometimes more so." Login. Did Child Custody: There Is No Gender Bias During Custody Decisions. The judges' tendency to discriminate in this manner coincided with their traditional gender ideologies: The more they supported traditional gender roles for men and women, the more parenting time they gave to the mother in the case. Before the 1980s, courts followed the “tender years doctrine.”The idea was that young children were attached to their mothers, especially if the children were breastfeeding. The “primary caregiver” is the parent who took care of the child the most before the custody hearing. "Overall, the judges and the laypeople both saw the woman's case as having more merit than the man's," Miller said. Library, Employment (This may not be the same place you live). Laypeople awarded 0.15 of a day more time to mothers. In other words, decisions in the woman's discrimination case were influenced by the judges' personal ideologies about the proper roles for men and women.". Or view hourly updated newsfeeds in your RSS reader: Keep up to date with the latest news from ScienceDaily via social networks: Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Law Practice, Attorney www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180419141541.htm (accessed November 28, 2020). All rights reserved. "My first takeaway is that judges are human, just like the rest of us," she said. your case, Child Custody and Child Visitation Rights, Child Visitation Guidelines: 10 Things You Should Know, Online Law "They were being very forward-thinking and brave, I think," said Miller, who took on the challenge while working as a postdoctoral researcher at the American Bar Foundation and is continuing the work at Illinois. The judges wanted to know whether their own decision-making was affected by biases that could contribute to social disparities in the legal system. Copyright 1999-2020 LegalMatch. Law, Immigration But she was surprised that judges' expertise in family law did not reduce their tendency to be influenced by their personal ideas about gender. Note: Content may be edited for style and length. Cathy Meyer is a certified divorce coach, marriage educator, freelance writer, and founding editor of DivorcedMoms.com. The findings, which are part of a broader study of judicial behavior, revealed that the judges were just as likely as laypeople to discriminate -- in ways that harmed both men and women -- in decisions involving child custody or workplace discrimination cases related to family caregiving duties. The Supreme Court has ruled that the judicial use of gender to justify a child custody decision is sex discrimination and a violation of the Constitution. The judges gave mothers, on average, about half a day more time with their children than they gave fathers. Services Law, Real Today, the “tender years doctrine” has been abolished. Jason graduated from the University of San Francisco in 2015 and from the University of California, Berkeley in 2010. Judges in the shared-custody case were more likely than laypeople to give a mother more time with a child than a father. At least, that’s how it works in theory. Can't find your category? Have any problems using the site? "This research is showing that judges are not as immune as maybe they think they are.". Miller is sharing her findings with the judges in the study and working with them to find ways to reduce the role of their personal biases in their courtroom decision-making. ScienceDaily. The judges read about the cases and then made decisions about how to resolve them. Financial support for ScienceDaily comes from advertisements and referral programs, where indicated. Materials provided by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The issues and aims used were: (1) To examine whether gender discrimination against fathers exists in custody disputes. However, judges may decide how child custody is divided partly on who the “primary caregiver” was. Judges as susceptible to gender bias as laypeople -- and sometimes more so. ScienceDaily. Content on this website is for information only. If a judge outright states that women, as a sex, are better suited to be parents, then the case should be appealed. Miller said she wasn't surprised that judges can be influenced by the gender of plaintiffs. 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ABSTRACT The objective of the study was to examine whether gender discrimination against fathers exists in custody disputes. & All of the judges were asked about their legal expertise. . For example, if a mother took care of the child while the father was at work, then the mother is primary caregiver and the judge may take that into account. "In the shared-custody case, the judges were influenced more by gender than the lay sample," Miller said. If a father was most responsible for raising the child prior to the custody hearing, then the father may be the primary caregiver. The Supreme Court has ruled that the judicial use of gender to justify a child custody decision is sex discrimination and a violation of the Constitution. We've helped more than 5 million clients find the right lawyer – for free. Get the latest science news with ScienceDaily's free email newsletters, updated daily and weekly. LegalMatch Call You Recently. "An extra half day with a child each week … However, judges may decide how child custody is divided partly on who the “primary caregiver” was. (this may not be the same place you live), Faulty/Defective Products/Services (Auto, Drug), Investments (Annuities, Securities, IPOs), Post Your Case - Get Answers from Multiple "In the shared-custody case, the judges were influenced more by gender than the lay sample," Miller said. Jason is an associate attorney with Kronenberg Law PC, where he serves as counsel for corporations and property owners. As a divorce mediator, she provides clients with strategies and resources that enable them to power through a time of adversity. Property Law, Products Instead, courts now follow the primary caregiver and only use it as one factor among many other factors. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily, its staff, its contributors, or its partners. It is not intended to provide medical or other professional advice. The primary caregiver may not always be the mother though. Only those with recent experience on specific types of cases -- for example, child custody cases in family court -- were asked to analyze cases in those fields. "Judges as susceptible to gender bias as laypeople -- and sometimes more so."