Belleville & Edwardsville Divorce & Family Law Blog by Stange Law Firm, PC

It might surprise some Missouri residents that research has found, when it comes to child custody cases, even in situations where abuse is alleged, fathers are given preference over mothers. This goes against the popular belief that mothers are given preference in child custody battles.

The research, completed by a George Washington University Law School professor, shows this to be particularly true when parental alienation is claimed by the father and abuse by the mother. According to the findings, only 1 in 51 cases like this are substantiated in court. Parental alienation is the claim that one parent has worked to make their child become distant or hate their other parent.

Missouri parents who get a divorce may feel as though they are struggling to do the right thing for their children. However, while divorce can be hard on children, parents can work together to make it easier for them.

Children need to feel free to maintain a normal relationship with both parents. This means being able to express both love for and frustration with one parent to the other without worrying about how that parent will react. Parents should be able to help their children navigate their relationship with the other parent and remain neutral. If possible, parents should try to spend holidays together. If they cannot do this, they should at least both try to be at events for the children that cannot be held twice. Eventually, there will be occasions such as a graduation that parents will have to attend at the same time. Children should never feel as though they have to choose between their parents.

When parents in Missouri think about the kind of records they need to gather to prepare for a divorce, a calendar is probably not even on the list. However, a calendar can provide valuable information for parents who need to reconstruct a schedule and list of expenses associated with their children. Deep into the stressful process of divorce, it can be difficult for parents to accurately answer questions about expenses, and a calendar can help.

One thing the calendar can do is jog a parent's memory about certain expenses. For example, it can be easy to forget about the many birthday parties a child attends throughout the year and the cost of gifts for those parties. Parents may also forget about the child taking trips out of town for sports events or about trips to the doctor or therapist. A calendar can clarify all of this and can serve as evidence if parents have a dispute about costs, dates or frequency of an event. This information can be helpful in determining child support.

Parents in Missouri and elsewhere in the United States are generally required to provide financial support for their children. This is typically true whether they are married to each other or not. In most cases, child support amounts are determined by looking at a parent's income and expenses. A judge will also take into account the specific needs of a child when determining how much a noncustodial parent may be required to contribute.

When determining a parent's income, a court can look at a variety of payment sources such as wages, government benefits and pensions. A court may also use any money obtained in the form of a gift, prize of distribution from a trust when calculating a noncustodial parent's monthly child support obligation. If custody is split between two parents, each one may be required to make formal support payments depending on the circumstances of the custody agreement.