Reform on the way for joint custody of children

Appearing to heed growing calls for children of separated parents to be raised by both the father and the mother, Justice Minister Kostas Tsiaras has set up an 18-member committee headed by a former Supreme Court prosecutor to reform existing legislation.

“The legal framework must move towards establishing joint custody between parents after the dissolution of the marriage. Society is mature enough to go one step further,” said Marios Andrikopoulos, a member of the committee.

Joint custody and the alternating residency of children between parents has been in force for at least 20 years in many countries including France, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, Brazil, Mexico and 19 US States. A study by Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet of 156,000 children aged 12-15 found that those spending equal time with each parent had fewer psychological problems than those living with one parent.