Can a Father Get Custody of an Infant?
In certain cases, fathers can get primary or even full custody of even very young babies. However, fathers seeking more time with their infants than the mother is willing to agree to may need to overcome significant legal hurdles. Courts tend to favor keeping newborns or young babies together with their mothers unless there is an excellent reason to place the baby primarily with the father. You will likely need to show that your baby is not safe with the mother and would fare better being cared for by you. Fathers seeking primary custody of their infants need to be represented by an experienced child custody lawyer who is experienced in working with fathers.
Postpartum Mental Health and Emergency Custody Orders
Postpartum mental health disorders, such as postpartum psychosis or postpartum depression can come on suddenly and may be severe enough to warrant hospitalization. If your baby’s mother developed a postpartum mental illness, she may not be able to safely care for a newborn. Your attorney may be able to have your infant placed in your care on an emergency basis. However, these orders are often temporary, as postpartum mental health issues are generally very treatable. Your ex may recover and try to regain custody rights on a more permanent basis.
During this time, you should focus on bonding with your child. Being established as the child’s primary or sole caregiver can help your case later.
Breastfeeding, Substances, and Custody of an Infant
The one thing a mother can do that a father cannot breastfeed an infant. If your baby’s mother is exclusively breastfeeding, this may make it more difficult for you to get time with your baby away from the mother. Today, most health insurance companies will provide new mothers with a breast pump, allowing fathers to feed their children breastmilk while the mother is not present. However, pumping and storing milk does not work for all mothers.
There is also the issue of situations where breastfeeding would be unsafe, for example, if the mother uses drugs that could pass into breastmilk and harm the infant, such as marijuana or certain prescription drugs.
If your baby’s mother is using intoxicating substances while caring for the baby, this alone may be grounds for placing the baby primarily in your care.
Supervised Visitation for Mothers
Courts are often extremely reluctant to totally separate an infant from his or her mother. A middle-ground solution is to ask for supervised visitation for the mother. Supervised visitation allows you or another appropriate adult to monitor the mother as she spends time with the baby.
Contact a Child Custody Lawyer for Dads
While courts generally want to keep very young babies with their mothers, it is sometimes possible for fathers to get primary or sole custody even of newborns. You need an experienced child custody lawyer for fathers if you are seeking custody of your infant child.
