Law makers in Tennessee are in a heated debate whether shared custody in divorces that involve children can be a common solution to deicide custody cases in the best interest of children. At the center of the discussion is the question whether it is reasonable that mothers are generally favored by courts to receive (full) custody of their children.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court disqualified a district judge as it believed that he misinterpreted grandparent visitation laws. Judge Charles Gray apparently used “an expansive interpretation of grandparent visitation laws to give the paternal grandparents of a 4-year-old boy physical custody of the child five days a week while limiting the mother to two days.”

21-year-old Spc. Alexis Hutchinson was arrested on November 6 for failing to show up to deploy with her unit to Afghanistan. Hutchison, a single mom and cook, said that there was no one to care for her 10 month old baby.

There is a common perception in this country that divorcing dads will lose their children in custody battles simply by default. However, a report published by Working Mothers magazine published today states that the times may be changing. Dads apparently are increasingly taking over primary child care duties, which puts the in a much better position to get full custody of their children.

“The shifting custody landscape is alarming to working moms, many of whom say they work primarily to provide a better life for their children,” said Working Mother Editor-in-Chief Suzanne Riss. “Women are surprised to learn that time spent in the office is increasingly being viewed by the courts as evidence that they’re less involved in their child’s day-to-day care. It’s important that working mothers understand the changes in custody rulings.”

Living close to an airport can be nerve wrecking, but can it cause your spouse to leave? A Bay Area man claims just that.

60-year old Stanley Hilton is convinced that the constant noise of the San Francisco International Airport led to his divorce. The price to alleviate his pain: $15 million.

Leah Sears, retired chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court, professor on family law issues at the University of Georgia School of Law and a former single mom, has published a rather controversial article on CNN that highlights the decline of respect for the promise of marriage among Americans. Some of the claims may not sit that well with many single parents, but Sears raises some interesting and certainly valid concerns.

“Many Americans are failing their children because they have already failed themselves,” Sears writes. She points to a dramatically declining U.S. Marriage Index that needs to be addressed rather sooner than later by the U.S. government as current regulations aren’t working that well.

An appeals court in Ohio has ruled that Marilyn Anderson, mother of 9-year daughter Victoria, is not allowed to smoke around her child.

Facing a rather uncertain future on TV, Jon Gosselin announced that he will be filing a $5 million lawsuit against TLC that is likely going after a contract that he considers as too restrictive to enable him to make a living. Meanwhile, it seems that TLC is positioning its artillery for a lawsuit that is designed to reveal business and family secrets. Somehow, we feel it is already clear who will lose.

Levi Johnston, father of Sarah Palin’s grandson Tripp, is reportedly pursuing a joint custody agreement. Johnston claims that the Palin family is making it difficult to see his 10 month-old son.

Exclusive to Single Parent Gossip – Pornography on the Internet has many faces. We all know that it always was and always will be one of the most popular topic areas and most of us have to admit that we at least played with the idea to find out what is out there.

But there is one topic we usually don’t talk about and pretend it does not exist – child pornography. Single Parent Gossip author and child safety expert Pat McKenna exposed disturbing information that child pornography and paedophiles may be just one click away from some single parents. This direct imminent threat to the safety of children does not only exist in what many still believe is an ocean of anonymity of the Internet. There is an especially alarming implication for the real world.

In the light of the recession and rising unemployment, many states have created so called “child custody employment programs”, which are generally describe as a support system to help fathers meet their child support obligations. However, there is a rather ugly side to this approach. Mr. Custody Coach as an interesting article highlighting some of the problems of these programs.

Managing your divorce and custody is most likely one of the most difficult tasks in your life. What you want, what you need and what you eventually settle for are, in most cases, three entirely different things. Every divorce is unique and while it is generally best to avoid expensive lawyers, you may not be able to settle out of court, especially if you are in a highly hostile divorce in which one or both parties aren’t willing to compromise.

The obvious conclusion in such a scenario is that you would go to war and fight. You may have a good reason to. But you need to be aware of the consequences of such a decision and you may want to look at some alternatives. Single Parent Gossip has some food for thought.