According to new data from the Census Bureau’s 2017 report on families and living arrangements, the number of single-parent households in the U.S. is on the rise as is the number of children being raised primarily by their fathers.
Deseret News reporter Jennifer Graham examined this trend in a recent article that featured quotes from Cordell & Cordell CEO and managing partner Scott Trout.
Mr. Trout noted that the numbers reflect an evolving social landscape in which more mothers are entering the workforce while fathers are more active participants in their children’s lives.
“As fast as technology has changed, gender roles and parenting roles have changed,” Mr. Trout said.
This trend has gradually started factoring into child custody cases. Traditionally, men had no expectation of getting custody when they went before a judge, but those stereotypes have begun to fade as more women have become the family breadwinner and more men have become stay-at-home dads.
“All courts, in our perspective, should start from a 50-50 perspective, meaning that they’re equal parents, absent some fact otherwise, and that’s where we should start,” Mr. Trout said.
“It’s not about being pro-dad and anti-mom. It’s just the opposite for us at Cordell & Cordell. We’re pro-family, and we know that studies out there say that when two parents are maximally involved, the children’s lives are far better.”
Written by Joseph E. Cordell
Joseph E. Cordell is the Principal Partner at Cordell and Cordell, P.C., which he founded in 1990 with his wife, Yvonne. Over the past 25 years, the firm has grown to include more than 100 offices in 30 states, as well as internationally in the United Kingdom. Mr. Cordell is licensed to practice in the states of Illinois and Missouri and received his LL.M. from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Joseph E. Cordell was named one of the Top 10 Best Family Law Attorneys for Client Satisfaction in Missouri.
