Family Court Judges' Decisions Regarding Post-Separation Care Arrangements for Young Children

Whether young children should be in shared care following their parents' separation is a contentious issue, but the impact of this controversy on judicial decision making is unknown. This study examined 110 care arrangement Decisions made in relation to children aged younger than four years as determined by the New Zealand Family Court. Also of interest, was the reasoning used as reflected in judges' written Decisions. Although shared care orders were rarely made, overnight contact with the non-resident parent was ordered in the majority of cases. Overnight contact with the non-resident parent was more likely to be ordered if the young child had older siblings. Other factors examined, including the child's age, gender, domestic violence, parent mental health problems and parent substance abuse, were not associated with care arrangements. Qualitative analysis of judges' written Decisions suggested that judges made care arrangements using a case-by-case approach rather than a formulaic approach. Relevant considerations included Care of Children Act 2004 principles, psychological report recommendations, previous and/or current care arrangements, and factors associated with parental separation which can affect child development such as loss of an already established attachment relationship, parental conflict and diminished parenting quality, safety concerns and care arrangements of siblings.