What factors are considered in awarding custody of a child?
The factors that are considered in awarding custody of a child are based on the term "best interest of the child". So, you're going to get custody based on what is in the best interest of the child and that's a slew of factors. The best interest of the child is a very vague kind of term and it depends on so many things. Generally, if it's in the best interest of the child to remain with the siblings, it's not in the court's interest to split siblings; it's not like dad's going to get the son, mum is going to get the daughter. The best interest of the child is to keep them together; that you have your brothers and sisters. It could depend on which schools are better. It could depend on maybe if one parent has remarried, so it's more like a home; although the court isn't going to hold it against you that you didn't remarry. It's just a variety of things. Drug use, obviously is not in the best interest of the child, and prostitution is obviously not in the best interest of the child. Interestingly enough, you're not supposed to consider parents' sexual preference. So, a lot of people think that if you're gay, you can't get custody. That's not true. The court is not supposed to consider whether you're a homosexual or a heterosexual in awarding custody. It's just different factors. I would go and see a custody specialist, because there's a way you can twist the situation to try to get custody. However, generally, if I was a judge, I would order joint custody. This is because every child has an interest in seeing both parents, and the law says it's always in the best interest of the child to have frequent and continuing contact with both parents. So, that's just the way it's going to be unless one person is incarcerated, or the other person's a drug dealer, etcetera.
