JANET BLOOMFIELD: Men’s Activists Say Divorce Courts Are Biased Against Fathers. They’re wrong? No, Hanna Rosin. They’re right. Let’s do the math. “Here comes the math, from the actual study [PDF].” See Table 2a on page 10 (PDF p.11), “Child Placement in Divorce Cases.” The numbers are from Wisconsin.
I’ve taken liberties with Bloomfield’s formatting in the hope that doing so makes her analysis more readable.
[Mother’s custody:]
- Sole custody goes to the mother 45.7% of the time
- Primary custody goes to the mother 13.0% of the time
- Shared custody is agreed to 32.4% of the time
- 45.7 + 13 = 58.7
- 58.7% of the time, mothers are awarded sole or primary custody
- 45.7 + 13 + 32.4 = 91.1
- 91.1% of the time, mothers are awarded equal or more custody
[Father’s custody:]
- Sole custody goes to the father 7.0% of the time
- Primary custody goes to the father 1.9% of the time
- Shared custody is the same as women, obviously – 32.4% of the time
[The two, compared:]
- 7 + 1.9 = 8.9
- So fathers are the sole or primary custodians of their children in 8.9% of all cases, versus 58.7% of the time for women.
- 7 + 1.9 + 32.4 = 41.3
- Fathers get equal or better custody 41.3% of the time, compared to 91.1% for mothers.
- 8.9% vs 58.7%
- 41.3% vs 91.1%
In response, one could say that perhaps fathers are just less deserving of custody than mothers, and that the courts reflect this. But court-commissioned judicial bias surveys in various states reveal a clear bias against fathers in family court proceedings.