California is among the few states that have recently adjusted their laws to better protect parents with disabilities, one report indicates. This protection can help a disabled parent as they seek to alter an agreement in a child custody battle. Without the support of the law, many disabled parents assert that they suffer discrimination as they fight for their children.
In a divorce-related child custody matter, disabled parents in California and across the nation in one report indicated that they lose more often than gain child custody. This may be due in part to the fact that many in the social services and judicial agencies are unfamiliar with the abilities of disabled parents to care for their children. Some are now seeking to change those biases through changes to laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act.
There are 6.1 million kids in our nation with parents who are disabled. Of these, there are many different types of disabilities, including both physical and mental. For those with mental disabilities, a child custody battle can be particularly difficult, the report says. In fact, kids are removed from the home of a mentally disabled parent in 80 percent of cases.
Child custody decisions, for parents who are able-bodied or disabled alike, are made on the basis of what a court believes is in the best interest of the children involved. This decision can turn on the parental investigator’s report. This fact is what has led some in our state and across the nation to work to change laws to better protect parents who suffer from disabilities. When a person in our state finds that they are in such a situation, they may wish to review all applicable rules to better understand just how to fight for the right to child custody of their kids.
Source: Huffington Post, “Disabled Parents Often Lose Custody Of Children, Report Finds,” David Crary, Nov. 26, 2012