Military Child Custody Bill Faces Opposition

A new child custody bill affecting military members is being received with mixed opinions.

HR 4469, sponsored by Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), would prevent the courts from permanently changing an existing custody order while a service member is deployed overseas. The bill would also require any temporary changes to the custody order during a deployment to be reversed once the service member returns home. Furthermore, under the terms of the bill, the courts could not use deployment or a possible deployment against a service member when determining the best interest of a child.

Both the Veterans of Foreign War (VFW) and the members of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) strongly support the bill. Says Justin Brown of the VFW, "The VFW strongly believes that a service member's duty should not reflect negatively on themselves for the sake of judicial proceedings that deal with something as serious as a permanent custody decision of a child."

Brown went on to stay that although deployment is hard on the entire family, it is not the service member's choice to go overseas, it's the government's decision which troops are deployed, and it's wrong to punish the service members for something that is out of their control.

In opposition to this support, the American Bar Association says the bill is well-motivated but not well-considered. A spokesperson for the ABA says the bill could result in child custody cases being heard in federal court, as opposed to the state court, which could lead to some unintended consequences. The ABA suggests that Congress should leave the issue alone for now, as many states are working on amending their child custody laws, with at least 30 states having already passed some changes.

Are you an active member of the U.S. military? Are you worried about how your deployment will affect your child custody arrangement? A  Jacksonville military divorce lawyer at Ellerin Hutchinson can help. To schedule a consultation to discuss your situation, please call (904) 866-4489.