Shared Parenting News: Shared Parenting Law Not The Best Option For High Conflict, Complex Living Arrangements

Shared parenting law has been deemed as an effective way to eliminate the tragic cases of parental alienation in a broken family household. It is often seen as the best option to stop the trauma experienced by the family, especially the children, and to promote a more harmonious relationship between conflicting exes.

U.S. Senator Will Brownsberger, however, recently shed a new light on shared parenting law. According to the senator, the shared parenting legislature was one of the unsolved issues in the session over the weekend.

In an article published on Beacon Hill Patch, Sen. Brownsberger stressed that everyone is supporting the shared parenting concept. However, legislators can't seem to agree if the divorce law should be amended to make shared parenting a part of the post-divorce parenting plans.

Even though the current shared parenting law gives emphasis on the best interest of the child and promoting the benefits of spending an equal amount of time with each parent, Brownsberger admitted that he's uncomfortable with the House's draft. One of the hard truths Brownsberger highlighted was the fact that shared parenting is really not a panacea for broken families, particularly when the concept is not feasible such as in "high conflict and complex living arrangements."

"I was not comfortable with the House's draft, because I felt that it might create too strong a push toward complex sharing arrangements in high conflict situations where they may not be workable," the 59-year-old state senator explained. "If any changes are to be made in the statute, the changes should more explicitly acknowledge the need of children for a stable, safe and low-conflict living arrangement. The best interest of the child should always be the first consideration."

Sen. Brownsberger's thoughts on shared parenting bill have earned various reactions from men and women, who may be parents or have experienced the harsh reality of divorce or separation. On the senator's website, some were glad the bill didn't pass, while others pointed out what should be done to address the increasing cases of parental alienation.

Meanwhile, shared parenting is a collaborative arrangement in a child custody after a divorce and separation. Family Lives explains that shared parenting will allow both parents to have an equal right and responsibility to be actively involved in child raising.

Speaking of parental alienation, several states including Missouri has promoted the shared parenting legislation. As Parent Herald previously reported, the law will allow children to spend equal time with each parent after a divorce or separation.

Aside from Missouri, the states of Minnesota, Utah and South Dakota have also joined the campaign in passing shared parenting laws. Unfortunately, Florida did not support the newly proposed law advocating shared parenting, instead the state is encouraging the courts to "break up child custody in whatever way is best suited in the situation, even if that limits a child's time with one parent," Daniel Forrest of Lawyers.com revealed.

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