Opinion ID: 1832878
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Review of the Traditional Approach to Joint Physical Care.

Text: While we find that the Iowa legislature has not overridden prior case law regarding joint physical care, we nonetheless believe that the notion that joint physical care is strongly disfavored except in exceptional circumstances is subject to reexamination in light of changing social conditions and ongoing legal and research developments. Increasingly in Iowa and across the nation, our family structures have become more diverse. While some families function along traditional lines with a primary breadwinner and primary caregiver, other families employ a more undifferentiated role for spouses or even reverse traditional roles. A one-size-fits-all approach in which joint physical care is universally disfavored is thus subject to serious question given current social realities. In addition, the social science research related to child custody issues is now richer and more varied than it was in the past. In the past, many scholars and courts rejected joint physical care based on the influential writings of Joseph Goldstein, Anna Freud, and Albert J. Solnit. These scholars utilized attachment theory to emphasize the need to place children with a single psychological parent with whom the children had bonded. Joseph Goldstein, Anna Freud, & Albert J. Solnit, Beyond the Best Interests of the Child 98 (1979). Although the research upon which the psychological parent attachment theory was based rested upon studies of infants, it was also thought to apply throughout the life cycle of a child. Shelley A. Riggs, Is the Approximation Rule in the Child's Best Interests?, 43 Fam. Ct. Rev. 481, 484 (2005). The psychological parent approach stressed the important role of a strong, caring parent-child dyad and embraced what is sometimes termed a monotropic view of infant-child bonding. Robert F. Kelley and Shawn L. Ward, Social Science Research and the American Law Institute's Approximation Rule, 40 Fam. Ct. Rev. 350, 355-59 (2002); Peggy Cooper Davis, The Good Mother: A New Look at Psychological Parent Theory, 22 N.Y.U. Rev. L. & Soc. Change 347, 360 (1996). The psychological parent approach based on attachment theory seems to have influenced a number of courts. Pikula v. Pikula, 374 N.W.2d 705, 711 (Minn.1985), superseded by statute, Minn.Stat. § 248.2 (1989), as stated in Maxfield v. Maxfield, 452 N.W.2d 219 (Minn.1990); In re Custody of D.G., 246 N.W.2d 892, 895-96 (N.D. 1976). Attachment theory that emphasizes primary relationships continues to have strong advocates. Riggs, 43 Fam. Ct. Rev. at 482-90; James G. Dwyer, A Taxonomy of Children's Existing Rights in State Decision Making About Their Relationship, 11 Wm. & Mary Bill Rts. J. 845, 913 (2003); Mary Ann Mason, The Custody Wars: Why Children are Losing the Legal Battle, and What We Can Do About It 116 (1999). The validity of the parent-child dyad or monotropic view of attachments, however, has been subject to substantial question. Many scholars now view infants as capable of attaching to multiple caregivers and not simply one psychological parent. Michael E. Lamb, Placing Children's Interest First: Developmentally Appropriate Parenting Plans, 10 Va. J. Soc. Pol'y and L. 98, 109-13 (2002). Further, a growing body of scholarship suggests that the continued presence and involvement of both parents is often beneficial to the lives of children and not necessarily detrimental as believed by many adherents of the psychological parent theory. Id. at 100 (citing disadvantages of children growing up in fatherless families, including psychological adjustment, behavior and achievement at school, educational attainment, employment trajectories, and income generation); Michael T. Flannery, Is Bird Nesting in the Best Interest of Children?, 57 S.M.U. L.Rev. 295, 302 (2004) (most commentators agree that, generally, children benefit from continued contact with both parents after a divorce). As a result, a substantial body of scholarly commentary now challenges the blanket application of the monotropic psychological parent attachment theory to avoid joint physical care. For example, reputable scholars have stated that, despite literature that suggests moderate correlations between conditions of early rearing and classes of later outcomesfor example, with respect to attachment and parental bonding experts' ability to make specific predictions, given specific conditions (let alone ambiguous ones!) is weak to negligible. Thomas M. Horner & Melvin J. Guyer, Prediction, Prevention, and Clinical Expertise in Child Custody Cases in Which Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse Have Been Made, 25 Fam. L.Q. 217, 248 (1991). Some academic observers suggest that joint physical care may be a way to encourage continued involvement of both spouses in the lives of the children. Matthew A. Kipp, Maximizing Custody Options: Abolishing the Presumption against Joint Physical Custody, 79 N.D. L.Rev. 59 (2003); Stephanie N. Barnes, Strengthening the Father-Child Relationship through a Joint Custody Presumption, 35 Willamette L.Rev. 601 (1999). They cite a wide range of studies to suggest that children may be better off with joint physical care than other arrangements. The current social science research cited by advocates of joint custody or joint physical care, however, is not definitive on many key questions. To begin with, there are substantial questions of definition and methodology. Such criticisms include: samples that only examine parents who voluntarily choose joint custody, the use of small and homogenous groups, the skewing of samples toward middle class parents with higher incomes and education, the lack of control groups, and the lack of distinction between joint custody arrangements and traditional sole custody with visitation, and the failure to differentiate the effects of preexisting parental characteristics from the effects of custody type. Jana B. Singer & William L. Reynolds, A Dissent on Joint Custody, 47 Md. L.Rev. 497, 507 (1988); see also Diane N. Lye, What the Experts Say: Scholarly Research on Post-Divorce Parenting and Child Wellbeing, Report to the Washington State Gender and Justice Commission and Domestic Relations Commission 4-2 (1999) (research fraught with methodological difficulties and severe limitations) [hereinafter Lye, Report]; Daniel A. Krauss & Bruce D. Sales, Legal Standards, Expertise, and Experts in the Resolution of Contested Child Custody Cases, 6 Psychol. Pub. Pol'y & L. 843, 850 (2000) (noting myriad of conceptual and methodological problems). Further, the data is conflicting or ambiguous. As noted by one recent academic observer, the research to date on the benefits of joint physical care is inconclusive and has produced mixed results. Stephen Gilmore, Contact/Shared Residence and Child Well-Being: Research Evidence and its Implications for Legal Decision Making, 20 Int'l J.L. & Pol'y & Fam. 344, 352-53 (2006); see also Krauss & Sales, 6 Psychol. Pub. Pol'y & L. at 857-58 (recent empirical studies of joint custody have not been able to demonstrate a substantial positive effect on postdivorce child adjustment when joint physical care is compared with other custodial arrangements). An exhaustive review commissioned by the Washington State Supreme Court Gender and Justice Commission and the Domestic Relations Commission examined the many studies related to child custody issues. The review concluded that the available research did not reveal any particular post-divorce residential schedule to be most beneficial to children. While the review concluded that the research did not demonstrate significant advantages to children of joint physical care, the research also did not show significant disadvantages. Lye, Report at Summary. While it seems clear that children often benefit from a continuing relationship with both parents after divorce, the research has not established the amount of contact necessary to maintain a close relationship. Preeminent scholars have noted that surprisingly, even a fairly small amount of close contact seemed sufficient to maintain close relationships, at least as these relationships were seen from the adolescents' perspective. Eleanor E. Maccoby, et al., Postdivorce Roles of Mothers and Fathers in the Lives of Their Children, 7 J. Fam. Psychol. 24, 24 (1993); see also Michael E. Lamb, Noncustodial Fathers and Their Impact on the Children of Divorce in The Postdivorce Family: Children, Parenting, and Society 105, 111 (Ross A. Thompson & Paul R. Amato eds., 1999) (causal link between frequency of father-child contact and child's adjustment to parental divorce much weaker than one might expect); Valarie King, Variation in the Consequences of Nonresident Father Involvement for Children's Well-Being, 56 J. of Marriage & Fam. 963, 970-71 (1994) (benefit to child not related to quantity of visits), as cited in American Law Institute, Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution § 2.02 cmt. f. (2000) [hereinafter Principles ]; Gilmore, 20 Int'l J.L. & Pol'y & Fam. at 358 (not contact per se but the nature and quality of contact that are important to children's adjustment). There is thus growing support for the notion that the quality, and not the quantity, of contacts with the non-custodial parent are the key to the wellbeing of children. Quality interaction with children can, of course, occur within the framework of traditional visitation and does not occur solely in situations involving joint physical care. At present, the available empirical studies simply do not provide a firm basis for a dramatic shift that would endorse joint physical care as the norm in child custody cases. Nonetheless, in light of the changing nature of the structure of families and challenges to the sweeping application of psychological parent attachment theory, we believe the joint physical care issue must be examined in each case on the unique facts and not subject to cursory rejection based on a nearly irrebuttable presumption found in our prior cases. Gilmore, 20 Int'l J.L. & Pol'y & Fam. at 360-61 (the law should eschew the use of presumptions in the process of deciding post-separation parenting regimes); Krauss & Sales, 6 Psychol. Pub. Pol'y & L. at 857 (empirical research does not support presumptions to resolve custody disputes); Lye, Report at 4-1 (circumstances of each family are unique, recognition of unique circumstances central to good post-divorce parenting choices). Any consideration of joint physical care, however, must still be based on Iowa's traditional and statutorily required child custody standardthe best interest of the child. See Iowa Code § 598.41(5)( a ). Physical care issues are not to be resolved based upon perceived fairness to the spouses, but primarily upon what is best for the child. The objective of a physical care determination is to place the children in the environment most likely to bring them to health, both physically and mentally, and to social maturity. Phillips v. Davis-Spurling, 541 N.W.2d 846, 847 (Iowa 1995); In re Marriage of Courtade, 560 N.W.2d 36, 38 (Iowa Ct.App. 1996). We recognize that the best interest standard is subject to attack on the ground that it is no standard at all, that it has the potential of allowing gender bias to affect child custody determinations, and that its very unpredictability increases family law litigation. See Robert H. Mnookin, Child-Custody Adjudication: Judicial Functions in the Face of Indeterminacy, 39 Law & Contemp. Probs. 226, 256-60 (1975); Carl E. Schneider, Discretion, Rules and Law: Child Custody and the UMDA's Best-Interest Standard, 89 Mich. L.Rev. 2215, 2220-25 (1991). On the other hand, the advantage of the standard is that it provides the flexibility necessary to consider unique custody issues on a case-by-case basis. Katharine T. Bartlett, Child Custody in the 21st Century: How the American Law Institute Proposes to Achieve Predictability and Still Protect the Individual Child's Best Interests, 35 Willamette L.Rev. 467, 470 (1999). We believe the best approach to determining difficult child custody matters involves a framework with some spine, but the sufficient flexibility to allow consideration of each case's unique facts. In Iowa, the basic framework for determining the best interest of the child has long been in place. In the context of custody decisions, the legislature has established a nonexclusive list of factors to be considered. Iowa Code § 598.41(3) (citing nonexclusive factors including suitability of parents, whether psychological and emotional needs and development of child will suffer from lack of contact with and attention from both parents, quality of parental communication, the previous pattern of caregiving, each parent's support of the other, wishes of the child, agreement of the parents, geographic proximity, and safety). Although Iowa Code section 598.41(3) does not directly apply to physical care decisions, we have held that the factors listed here as well as other facts and circumstances are relevant in determining whether joint physical care is in the best interest of the child. In re Marriage of Winter, 223 N.W.2d 165, 166-67 (Iowa 1974). In considering whether to award joint physical care where there are two suitable parents, stability and continuity of caregiving have traditionally been primary factors. In re Marriage of Bevers, 326 N.W.2d 896, 898 (Iowa 1982) (noting who during the marriage provided routine care and questioning desirability of the children's nomadic existence for sake of parents); In re Marriage of Decker, 666 N.W.2d 175, 178-80 (Iowa Ct.App.2003) (past primary caregiving a factor given heavy weight in custody matters); In re Marriage of Williams, 589 N.W.2d 759, 762 (Iowa Ct.App.1998) (great emphasis placed on achieving emotional stability for children); Roberts, 545 N.W.2d at 343 (though not controlling, due consideration to historical primary caregiver); Coulter, 502 N.W.2d at 171 (stability cannot be overemphasized). Stability and continuity factors tend to favor a spouse who, prior to divorce, was primarily responsible for physical care. See Iowa Code § 598.41(3)( d ). We continue to believe that stability and continuity of caregiving are important factors that must be considered in custody and care decisions. As noted by a leading scholar, past caretaking patterns likely are a fairly reliable proxy of the intangible qualities such as parental abilities and emotional bonds that are so difficult for courts to ascertain. Bartlett, 35 Willamette L.Rev. at 480. While no post-divorce physical care arrangement will be identical to predissolution experience, preservation of the greatest amount of stability possible is a desirable goal. In contrast, imposing a new physical care arrangement on children that significantly contrasts from their past experience can be unsettling, cause serious emotional harm, and thus not be in the child's best interest. As a result, the successful caregiving by one spouse in the past is a strong predictor that future care of the children will be of the same quality. In re Marriage of Walton, 577 N.W.2d 869, 871 (Iowa Ct.App.1998). Conversely, however, long-term, successful, joint care is a significant factor in considering the viability of joint physical care after divorce. Ellis, 705 N.W.2d at 103. Stability and continuity concepts have been refined in the recent literature and expressed in terms of an approximation rule, namely, that the caregiving of parents in the post-divorce world should be in rough proportion to that which predated the dissolution. Elizabeth S. Scott, Pluralism, Parental Preference, and Child Custody, 80 Cal. L.Rev. 615, 617 (1992). Recently, the American Law Institute's Principles of Family Law, published in 2000, adopted the general rule that custodial responsibility should be allocated so that the proportion of custodial time the child spends with each parent approximates the proportion of time each parent spent performing caretaking functions for the child prior to the parents' separation. . . . Principles § 2:08, at 178. A reporter of the ALI Project on Family Dissolution that produced Principles suggests that the ALI approximation rule is gender neutral, focuses on historical facts rather than subjective judgments, and is, in most cases, likely to provide an environment that is in the best interest of the child. Bartlett, 35 Willamette L.Rev. at 480-82. We do not, however, adopt the ALI approximation rule in its entirety. Iowa Code section 598.41(3) and our case law requires a multi-factored test where no one criterion is determinative. Any wholesale adoption of the approximation rule would require legislative action. See W. Va.Code Ann. § 48-9-206(a) (2007). Nonetheless, we believe that the approximation principle is a factor to be considered by courts in determining whether to grant joint physical care. By focusing on historic patterns of caregiving, the approximation rule provides a relatively objective factor for the court to consider. The principle of approximation also rejects a one-size-fits-all approach and recognizes the diversity of family life. Finally, it tends to ensure that any decision to grant joint physical care is firmly rooted in the past practices of the individual family. There may be circumstances, of course, that outweigh considerations of stability, continuity, and approximation. For example, if a primary caregiver has abandoned responsibilities or had not been adequately performing his or her responsibilities because of alcohol or substance abuse, there may be a strong case for changing the physical care relationship. In re Marriage of Ford, 563 N.W.2d 629, 633 (Iowa 1997) (absence from home and less personal stability of former primary caregiver); see also Principles § 2.08(1)(a)-(h). In addition, the quality of the parent-child relationship is not always determined by hours spent together or solely upon past experience. Gary Crippen, Stumbling Beyond the Best Interests of the Child: Reexamining Child Custody Standard-Setting in the Wake of Minnesota's Four Year Experiment with Primary Caretaker Preference, 75 Minn. L.Rev. 427, 489-92 (1990); Schneider, 89 Mich. L.Rev. at 2283-87. All other things being equal, however, we believe that joint physical care is most likely to be in the best interest of the child where both parents have historically contributed to physical care in roughly the same proportion. Ellis, 705 N.W.2d at 103; Singer & Reynolds, 47 Md. L.Rev. at 521-22. Conversely, where one spouse has been the primary caregiver, the likelihood that joint physical care may be disruptive on the emotional development of the children increases. Coulter, 502 N.W.2d at 171; Muell, 408 N.W.2d at 777. A second important factor to consider in determining whether joint physical care is in the child's best interest is the ability of spouses to communicate and show mutual respect. Hynick, 727 N.W.2d at 580; Ellis, 705 N.W.2d at 101; Iowa Code § 598.41(3)( c ). A lack of trust poses a significant impediment to effective co-parenting. Eleanor E. Maccoby & Robert H. Mnookin, Dividing the Child: Social Costs and Legal Dilemmas of Custody 276 (1992) [hereinafter Maccoby & Mnookin]. Evidence of controlling behavior by a spouse may be an indicator of potential problems. McGee v. McGee, 224 A.D.2d 832, 835, 637 N.Y.S.2d 816 (1996) (citing domineering attitude); Kline v. Kline, 686 S.W.2d 13, 15-16 (Mo.Ct.App. 1984) (citing power struggles and hostility). Evidence of untreated domestic battering should be given considerable weight in determining custody and gives rise to a presumption against joint physical care. Iowa Code § 598.41(2)( c ); Hynick, 727 N.W.2d at 579; In re Marriage of Daniels, 568 N.W.2d 51, 55 (Iowa Ct.App.1997). Third, the degree of conflict between parents is an important factor in determining whether joint physical care is appropriate. Joint physical care requires substantial and regular interaction between divorced parents on a myriad of issues. Where the parties' marriage is stormy and has a history of charge and countercharge, the likelihood that joint physical care will provide a workable arrangement diminishes. It is, of course, possible that spouses may be able to put aside their past, strong differences in the interest of the children. Reality suggests, however, that this may not be the case. Maccoby & Mnookin at 284 (expressing deep concern in cases where there is substantial parental conflict); The Wingspread Report and Action Plan, High-Conflict Custody Cases, 39 Fam. Ct. Rev. 146, 146 (2001) ([h]igh-conflict custody cases seriously harm the children involved). In short, a stormy marriage and divorce presents a significant risk factor that must be considered in determining whether joint physical care is in the best interest of the children. The prospect for successful joint physical care is reduced when there is a bitter parental relationship and one party objects to the shared arrangement. Burkhart v. Burkhart, 876 S.W.2d 675, 680 (Mo.Ct.App.1994) (allegations of infidelity and breach of trust); Braiman v. Braiman, 44 N.Y.2d 584, 407 N.Y.S.2d 449, 378 N.E.2d 1019, 1021 (1978) (court ordered joint custody involving embattled and embittered parents, accusing one another of vices and wrongs, can only enhance familial chaos). As noted in the Washington state review, there is evidence that high levels of child contact with a nonresidential father are beneficial to children in low conflict families, but harmful to children in high conflict families. Lye, Report at 4-17; see also Kelly & Ward, 40 Fam. Ct. Rev. at 364 (much of the research on shared parenting that finds positive effects finds them in the context of postdivorce parental relationships in which high levels of conflict are absent). Conflict, of course, is a continuum, but expressions of anger between parents can negatively affect children's emotions and behaviors. Hildy Mauzerall, Patricia Young, & Debra Alsaker-Burke, Protecting of the Children of High Conflict Divorce: An Analysis of the Idaho Bench/Bar Committee to Protect Children of High Conflict Divorce's Report to the Idaho Supreme Court, 33 Idaho L.Rev. 291, 305 (1997). Even a low level of conflict can have significant repercussions for children. Robert E. Shepherd, Jr., Legal Dispute Resolution in Child Custody: Comments on Robert H. Mnookin's Resolving Child Custody Disputes Conference Presentation, 10 Va. J. Soc. Pol'y 89, 91 (2002). Courts must balance the marginal benefits obtained from the institution of a joint physical care regime as compared to other alternatives against the possibility that interparental conflict will be exacerbated by the arrangement, to the detriment of the children. Elizabeth Scott & Andre Derdeyn, Rethinking Joint Custody, 45 Ohio St. L.J. 455, 457 (1984). Because of the perceived detrimental impact of parental conflict on children, some commentators have urged that joint physical care should be encouraged only where both parents voluntarily agree to it. Frank F. Furstenberg, Jr. & Andrew J. Cherlin, Divided Families: What Happens to Children When Parents Part 75-76 (1991); see Or.Rev.Stat. § 107.169(3) (2007) (joint custody only upon agreement of parents); Vt. Stat. Ann. tit 15, § 665(a) (2007) (When parents cannot agree to divide or share parental rights and responsibilities, the court shall award parental rights and responsibilities primarily or solely to one parent.). Iowa Code section 598.41(5)( a ), however, requires the court to consider joint physical care upon the request of either party. While we, therefore, reject the notion that one spouse has absolute veto power over whether the court grants joint physical custody, In re Marriage of Bolin, 336 N.W.2d 441, 446 (Iowa 1983), the lack of mutual acceptance can be an indicator of instability in the relationship that may impair the successful exercise of joint physical care. See Iowa Code § 598.41(3)( g ) (court should consider whether one or both spouses agree or are opposed). A fourth important factor in determining whether joint physical care is in the best interest of the children, particularly when there is a turbulent past relationship, is the degree to which the parents are in general agreement about their approach to daily matters. Burham, 283 N.W.2d at 275 ( citing Dodd v. Dodd, 93 Misc.2d 641, 647, 403 N.Y.S.2d 401 (Sup. Ct.1978) for the proposition that even joint legal custody assumes agreement about child rearing practices); Burkhart, 876 S.W.2d at 680 (where record does not show commonality of ideas about child rearing, joint physical care inappropriate); Horton v. Horton, 891 A.2d 885, 892 (R.I.2006) (lack of agreement on discipline a factor). It would be unrealistic, of course, to suggest that parents must agree on all issues all of the time, but in order for joint physical care to work, the parents must generally be operating from the same page on a wide variety of routine matters. The greater the amount of agreement between the parents on child rearing issues, the lower the likelihood that ongoing bitterness will create a situation in which children are at risk of becoming pawns in continued post-dissolution marital strife. While the above factors are often significant in determining the appropriateness of joint physical care, we do not mean to suggest that they are the exclusive factors or that these factors will always be determinative. This court has stated, despite application of a multi-factored test, that district courts must consider the total setting presented by each unique case. In re Weidner, 338 N.W.2d 351, 356 (Iowa 1983) (each case to be considered upon its peculiar circumstances). The above factors present important considerations, but no iron clad formula or inflexible system of legal presumptions. Once it is decided that joint physical care is not in the best interest of the children, the court must next choose which caregiver should be awarded physical care. Iowa Code § 598.41(1)( a ), (5). The parent awarded physical care is required to support the other parent's relationship with the child. Id. § 598.41(5)( b ). In making this decision, the factors of continuity, stability, and approximation are entitled to considerable weight. The court should be alert, however, to situations where the emotional bonds between children and a parent who has not been the primary caregiver are stronger than the bonds with the other parent. In making decisions regarding joint physical care and, if joint physical care is not appropriate, in choosing a spouse for physical care, courts must avoid gender bias. In re Marriage of Tresnak, 297 N.W.2d 109, 112-13 (Iowa 1980). There is no preference for mothers over fathers, or vice versa. The preference is to advance gender neutral goals of stability and continuity with an eye toward providing the children with the best environment possible for their continued development and growth. In summary, we believe that statements in the case law indicating that joint physical care is strongly disfavored are overbroad. Factors often of importance in determining the viability of joint physical care include an overriding interest in stability and continuity, the degree of communication and mutual respect, the degree of discord and conflict prior to dissolution, and the extent to which the parties agree on matters involving routine care. While we believe that in many contested cases, the best interests of the child will not be advanced by joint physical care, the courts must examine each case based on the unique facts and circumstances presented to arrive at the best decision.