It takes two.

• Author: McCann, Meghan
• Position: TRENDS

What is in the best interest of the child continues to be the top consideration when awarding custody. As the body of research grows on the benefits of having both parents fully involved in the lives of their children after a divorce, states are shifting away from awarding mothers full custody to awarding both parents shared custody.

Research shows that parents awarded custody are more likely to pay child support and spend money on other kinds of tangible support for their children, such as gifts, groceries, clothing and school supplies.

Currently, 49 states and Washington, D.C., have laws specifically allowing courts to award joint custody. New York's law is the exception. While the statute does not specifically mention joint custody, case law has established legal precedent allowing judges to order joint custody. So far this session, New York lawmakers have introduced three bills that would define shared parenting and create a presumption that shared parenting is in the best interest of the child.

While all states are allowed to order joint custody, there is a new trend among state legislatures to provide more direction to the courts by both defining the term and encouraging the use of such orders.

In the last few years, several states have enacted legislation regarding shared custody, although the...