When I see things like this, I realize how fortunate I am. I have a loving partner, two wonderful children, and a great family situation overall. However, I understand that there are circumstances that necessitate legal intervention.

One of my friends has partial custody of his daughter, and I know he would love to be with her more often. Wednesday nights and every other weekend just doesn’t seem like enough. However, my friend and his “baby mama” decided that their daughter would be better off seeing mommy and daddy separate and happy rather than together and miserable.

Historically, there has been a bias against fathers when it comes to child support and custody issues. Conventional wisdom asserts an unwritten tenet that a single mother is better able to care for children than a single father. You only hear about child support when the father is in arrears. Fathers are often vilified as deadbeats.
I stumbled across the website of Thyden, Gross, and Callahan, LLP, a family law firm in Chevy Chase, MD. James Gross, one of the partners of the firm runs a blog about the rights of fathers in cases of divorce. The firm practices law in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. Laws differ from state to state, but this information is encouraging.

There is help out there for you. Check with the local bar association for a referral. The best thing to do is ask an attorney you know for that referral. There’s an old saying that, “all roads lead to attorneys.” You really only have to know one attorney.

This is a post about law, so a legal disclaimer is in order. This article is for information purposes and not intended as legal advice. Please seek the counsel of a qualified attorney in your state regarding these matters.