Jackson Jambalaya

 Joint custody might become standard practice in Mississippi divorce cases come July 1 if State Representative Shane Aquirre (R - La Vino) has his way.  

Mr. Aquirre introduced SB# 1662.  The bill would greatly change how custody is awarded in Mississippi.  The bill states: 

(2) * * * (a) (i) There shall be a rebuttable presumption that joint custody and equally shared parenting time is in the best interest of the child. If the court grants joint custody and equally shared parenting time, the court shall construct a parenting time schedule which maximizes the time each parent has with the child and ensures the best interest of the child is met.

(ii) The presumption created in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall be rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence. A court that does not award joint custody with equally shared parenting time shall document the reasons for deviating from the presumption.

(b) To calculate child support for joint custody with equally shared parenting time, unless the court determines a deviation from this paragraph is in the best interest of the child, the court shall:

(i) Calculate a child-support award under the guidelines of Section 43-19-101 for each parent as if each parent was the obligor;

(ii) Calculate the difference in the two (2) awards by subtracting the lesser award from the larger award; and

(iii) Order the difference in the two (2) awards to be paid by the parent who has the higher adjusted gross income to the parent with the lower adjusted gross income.

(c) Upon petition of both parents, the court may grant legal and/or physical custody to one (1) parent without documenting a reason for deviation.

Only five states have a similar law.  History and text of bill. The bill went to conference and was returned to both chambers where it awaits approval.  

A local attorney penned this little informal op-ed for this website: 

I see both sides of this argument. I see where it may be fairer to men, but I can see how it can be detrimental to the best interest of a child. 

As a child of divorced parents, the court system strongly favored women. My dad ended up with custody in 2008 of me and I saw a shift in father's rights during that time. I say that because I can speak on this not only as a practitioner but on a personal level.

I see where it's appealing to men. I also see potential issues with the violent parent aspect of the law. I can see how woman might start screaming abuse and abuse to prevent the presumption of 50/50 custody. BUT we already have the violent parent presumption in our statutes. I have seen cases on both sides where women make false accusations to get a “leg up” in chancery court but I have also seen true physical abuse on mother and dad trying to get full custody. It cuts both ways. 

In the state of Mississippi, the case of Albright v. Albright is how an initial custody determination if determined. Albright is a set of 12 factors that the Court reviews to determine who should have custody of a child. But, those factors are viewed in the light of the best interest of the minor child(ten). The Albright factors are not perfect. And often times the continuity of care factor holds the vast majority of the weight, which typically favors a mom over a dad. 

I think it's a start towards recognizing that moms and dads have equal roles in a child's life but I wish that it wouldn't be a true presumption because some dads only want joint custody to avoid child support. I also do not like how the bill is attempting to amend the child support guidelines. 

I hate math and the way we have it now works, it's easy and simple. Like I said Albright isn't perfect but it's so far the best we have to look at the best interest of the child and not the best interest of the parents. 

So I think instead of a bill, I wish the appellate courts would add more factors to Albright like: history of family involvement (because while a dad may not be the primary caregiver under Albright a dad may be heavily involved in his child’s lives). I wish our courts would also change standard visitation to Thursday to Mondays for noncustodial parents. 

I just see too many issues with this and most lawyers in the legal system wish that we would have been consulted prior to this bill being introduced.

 Attorney Danielle Banks warned of more litigation if the bill becomes law: