It\u2019s something we hear time and time again.<\/p>\n
\u201cCourts always favour the mother.\u201d<\/em> It\u2019s a belief that\u2019s been around for years, and for a lot of people, it still feels like the default. But in reality, that\u2019s not how things work.<\/p>\n The law doesn\u2019t start from the position of choosing one parent over the other. It starts somewhere else entirely \u2014 with the child.<\/p>\n When decisions are made about where a child should live or how time should be shared, the court\u2019s focus is on what\u2019s in that child\u2019s best interests. Not whether one parent is the mother or the father.<\/p>\n That might sound simple, but it changes the way everything is looked at.<\/p>\n Every family situation is different, so there isn\u2019t a fixed outcome that applies across the board. Instead, the court looks at the bigger picture.<\/p>\n That usually comes down to the day-to-day reality of the child\u2019s life \u2014 who they spend time with, what their routine looks like, and what\u2019s likely to keep things steady for them going forward. Practical details matter too \u2014 school, home environment, and how care has been shared up to that point.<\/p>\n In many cases, the outcome isn\u2019t about one parent \u201cwinning\u201d over the other. It\u2019s about finding a way for both parents to remain involved, where that\u2019s safe and appropriate.<\/p>\n Sometimes it works out as shared care. Other times, one parent ends up doing more of the day-to-day, with the other still very much involved. There isn\u2019t one set pattern \u2014 it comes back to what fits that particular family.<\/p>\n This idea that mothers are always favoured has been around for a long time. In the past, it was often the case that children stayed mainly with their mums, but that usually reflected how things were already working at home, rather than any rule the courts were following.<\/p>\n Things have shifted over time. More fathers are actively involved in day-to-day parenting, and that\u2019s reflected in the arrangements being made now.<\/p>\n We regularly see fathers securing shared care arrangements, and in some cases, being the primary carer. It isn\u2019t unusual \u2014 it just doesn\u2019t always get talked about as much.<\/p>\n These days, the focus is on child arrangements \u2014 where a child lives and how they spend time with each parent. That shift in language reflects a broader change in approach. It\u2019s less about one parent having control, and more about creating a structure that works for the child.<\/p>\n When parents separate, these worries tend to surface quite quickly. It\u2019s not really about winning or losing \u2014 it\u2019s the fear of being pushed out, or not seeing your children as much as you\u2019d hoped.<\/p>\n Letting go of the idea that one parent will automatically be favoured can help shift things a bit. The focus usually comes back to what life will look like for the child \u2014 keeping things settled, familiar, and making sure both parents remain part of that where possible.<\/p>\n If parents can talk things through and reach an agreement, that\u2019s often the easiest starting point. When that\u2019s not happening, getting some advice can help steady things and bring a bit more direction to the situation.<\/p>\n At Lund Bennett Family Law, we speak to parents on both sides of this concern. Some are worried they won\u2019t have enough time with their children. Others are unsure what the other parent might ask for.<\/p>\n Wherever you\u2019re coming from, we\u2019ll talk things through calmly and give you a clear picture of what to expect \u2014 without the myths, and without the jargon.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re unsure about your position or just want to understand how arrangements might work in your situation, you\u2019re always welcome to get in touch.<\/p>\n Sometimes a simple conversation is all it takes to make things feel a bit clearer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s something we hear time and time again. \u201cCourts always favour the mother.\u201d \u201cMothers get custody, fathers get weekends.\u201d It\u2019s a belief that\u2019s been around for years, and for a lot of people, it still feels like the default. But in reality, that\u2019s not how things work. The law doesn\u2019t start from the position of… Read More »Do Mothers Always Get Custody? Clearing Up a Common Misunderstanding<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1582,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"off","neve_meta_content_width":70,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[354,55,484],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-child-arrangements","category-child-law","category-custody"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1581","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1581"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1581\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1583,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1581\/revisions\/1583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lundbennett.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u201cMothers get custody, fathers get weekends.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\nWhat the court actually looks at<\/h2>\n
Why this belief has stuck around<\/h2>\n
How things are looked at now<\/h2>\n
We\u2019re here to talk it through<\/h2>\n