Tag / Shared parenting

by lostdad

Wütende Väter schöpfen neue Hoffnung

Another article on the German Supreme Courts ruling that shared-parenting can be applied in Germany,  if 1) it is in the childs interests and 2) the parents are not already battling it out in court. Then it can be ‘forcefully’ applied.

A couple of interesting things come out of this article:

  • The Germany Family Minister from the Social Democrat Party is VERY pro-mother.
  • Even though the cause of this ruling from the Supreme Court is based in part on the recommendation from the Council of Europe to incorporate shared parenting into national law this minister has ignored it, and has commissioned her own study into the benefits. This study is effectively forbidden from taking evidence from those children that are mostly affected by PAS. Because BOTH parents have to give written permission!

Finally an open letter from “mutterlobby.de” addressed to the family minister is referenced. This letter talks about fathers that simply want to see their children in the most negative way.  Isn’t is time to stop the gender war and find a common workable way for both sexes to contribute to the development of their own children?

via Streit um Scheidungskinder: Wütende Väter schöpfen neue Hoffnung – WELT

by lostdad

Darum hat sie ihre Familie für die Liebe verlassen

Interesting story from the German periodical Bunte. This is from a best-selling author and mother who details how she came to terms with shared parenting,  why she wanted it, and also the reaction from other mothers.

There is still a long why to go before some mothers realise that they do not “own” their children unfortunately.

via Bestsellerautorin Lisa Frieda Cossham: Darum hat sie ihre Familie für die Liebe verlassen | BUNTE.de

by lostdad

Gerichte dürfen Eltern geteilte Betreuung vorschreiben

Interesting story from WELT online.

The German supreme court has decided that there should not be a problem if the family courts decree a shared-parenting construct. The default up till now was the the every other weekend model.

But as always there is a major catch (or two)

  • It must be in the child’s interest (Kindeswohl).
  • The child must agree (and will be interviewed by the court)
  • The parents cannot be in clinch with each other.

Both of these points can be torpedoed quickly enough by any abusing parent. In particular the last point. A couple of calls to social services alleging something and no chance.

So it sounds good, but only in very few cases per year when both parents agree.

And as a footnote – There still isn’t a reasonable decision how to “split” the child maintenance in cases of shared parenting. At the moment it is split 50:50 when the time involved is 50:50, but the absent parent still pays 100% child maintenance costs even if he looks after this children up to 49% of the time. So what is going to happen in some families when the custodial parent is going to lose several hundred Euros a month 😉

Good idea from the title, but effectively useless for most absent parents.

via Trennungskinder: Gerichte dürfen Eltern geteilte Betreuung vorschreiben – WELT