Should Ashlee Simpson Get Primary Custody of Bronx? What About Pete Wentz?

It’s not news, but another celeb couple has bitten the dust. Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz are getting divorced. It’s not a clean break because they have a 2-year-old son, Bronx. Even though Pete has always been in Bronx’s life, Ashlee is reportedly filing for Primary Physical Custody—and Pete is saying Hell No! Good for him! Why would Ashlee get more time than Pete? When married couples split up, shouldn’t they just share time 50/50? Isn’t this best for the child? You’d think, but according to Celeste Liversidge, Family Law Attorney in California, it’s not the case.

She says, “It's not unusual for mom to end up with primary custody, even though dad has been and will continue to be very involved in a child's life.” Liversidge explains that Primary Custody simply means that one parent has more time with the child than the other.  “In a majority of cases, primary custody goes to mom, since she has presumably been the primary caretaker of the child on a daily basis. However, depending on Pete and Ashlee's schedules and work obligations, they could very well end up sharing time with Bronx equally.”

Let’s Give Dads A Little More Credit, Please!

Ashlee just doesn’t want primary custody. The singer-actress wants Wentz to pay her attorney's fees. Liversidge says this too is very common: “The court can order one party to pay the other's attorneys fees, depending on the parties' respective incomes.  Usually, the higher earner will be ordered to at least make a contribution to the other's attorney’s fees.  The reasoning behind this is that the court wants to ‘level the playing field’ when it comes to both parties being able to obtain quality legal representation.”

My thought is, if both parents have been involved, then they should remain involved in a 50/50 co-parenting way. And, if one parent has been doing everything (like me) and the other parent shows up, then those 2 parents should work together to introduce the child to the "new" parent and begin supervised visitation. The child is the priority.

What do you all think? Should Ashlee pay her own fees and agree to joint custody? Do think Pete is fair to want joint custody?

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