How does marital status affect custody rights of unwed fathers?
When a child’s parents are unmarried, the mother is almost always awarded sole physical custody unless the father takes action to be awarded custody. An unwed father often cannot win custody over a mother who is a good parent, but he will usually take priority over other relatives, foster parents, or prospective adoptive parents. If it can established that the mother is unfit for parenthood or is incapable of taking care of him, the unmarried father may get physical custody, especially if he was the child’s “primary caretaker.” Even if the court will not grant physical custody, shared legal custody should be granted. This would at least give the non-custodial parent the right to make important decisions about the child’s upbringing and welfare. At the very least, an unmarried parent can take steps to secure some form of custody or visitation rights, and ensure an ongoing relationship with his child. How does religion affect custody? With increasing numbers of interfaith marriages and d
