Why Do Custody Courts Fight Against Equal Shared Parenting Agreements?
While fit parents hold the clear constitutional right under the Fourteenth Amendment to agree to 50/50 custody, custody courts operate as a revenue-driven, self-protecting cartel that actively undermines equal parenting. Contested custody battles generate billions in attorney billable hours, custody evaluations, and Title IV-D state incentive bonuses. When courts override parental agreements, they unconstitutionally subordinate parental rights to judicial discretion and financial self-interest.
Parental Agreement vs. Judicial Cartel Conflict of Interest
Hilary Duff’s divorce finalized on January 28, 2016, this year is a great example of equal custody co-parenting after divorce. Originally Hilary filed for primary physical custody of Luca, their son, and joint legal custody. However, thanks to the cooperation from both parents it was agreed that they would share Luca equally both physically and legally.
According to Fox News a prenuptial agreement granted Mike Comrie, Duff’s recent ex-husband, $2.4 million for his share of their family home, as well as his vehicles and jewelry. The prenup allocated individual earnings from Duff’s career, and Comrie’s previous professional hockey career to remain their own assets.
There was no spousal support nor child support or alimony, as it was agreed that both time and financial responsibility would be split equally between the two parents while raising Luca.
US Weekly reports that Duff later discusses her divorce on the Ellen DeGeneres show. Having such an amicable divorce where parents share everything equally is still so new that it sparked interviews with Duff about how they were coping. Duff states they are still a family, share pictures when the other has Luca and do their best to make things as normal as possible for Luca. She has an understanding of how important it is to remain a positive influence, and only speaks in a positive light about her ex, saying they still joke together and “keep on trucking”.
Unfortunately, this did not all occur overnight. E News reports it took over a year for an agreement to be reached and finalized. Many parents go through court battles that stretch far longer and result in parental alienation, false allegations, invasive and costly court ordered methods; most of the time which lead to removing parental rights from one or the other parent.
It should not take even a year for an agreement of equal time with the children to be reached, nor cost a fortune (who knows what Hilary paid in legal fees)! By the time we are done an agreement like this will be the norm in shorter times at little to no cost. Duff is back in the dating game online and things are reportedly still running smoothly between her and her ex Comrie. So far Comrie has not had a problem with Hilary dating. Let’s just hope that it stays that way. Otherwise she might find herself needing our materials if he decides he is no longer okay with equal parenting time with their son.
Parents nor their child should not have to worry about the other parent flipping their agreement or changing their mind. Unfortunately in today’s family courts, having your rights protected automatically is not a reality. Parents and children are subject at either parent’s whim to be dragged into the divorce court and bullied and extorted if they do not know to protect both theirs and their child’s rights.
Let’s hope we don’t see either of them file for a modification as soon as one of them finds a new love interest or has a disagreement and stops getting along.
Comparative Matrix: Fit Parental Agreement vs. The Corrupted Family Court Reality
Contrasting constitutional parent-child autonomy against institutional family court industry incentives.
| System Dimension | The Corrupted Family Court Cartel | Constitutional Law & Parental Agreement |
|---|---|---|
| Parental Decision Authority | Treats fit parents as state-licensed guardians subject to arbitrary judicial veto. | Fit parents hold exclusive constitutional authority to divide custody equally. |
| Financial Extortion Risk | Maximizes billable hours, custody evaluations, and Title IV-D state incentive funds. | $0 in unnecessary litigation; financial resources remain directly with the children. |
| Child's Psychological Health | Institutional trauma manufactured by adversarial court warfare and alienation. | Continuous, loving, and equal bond with both parents without state disruption. |
| Governing Legal Standard | Unchecked judicial "discretion" operating with near-total immunity from oversight. | Strict Scrutiny and substantive due process protections (Troxel, Santosky). |
Full Video Transcript
Ellen DeGeneres: You have new hair.
Hilary Duff: I do?
Ellen DeGeneres: Yes, it's new.
Hilary Duff: I think it was green last time I was here.
Ellen DeGeneres: Yeah, it's always something different.
Hilary Duff: But I'm always here, so...
Ellen DeGeneres: Yes, but it's always different.
Hilary Duff: You know what? We just got finished filming the second season of "Younger," and my hair--
Ellen DeGeneres: Congratulations!
Hilary Duff: Thank you.
Ellen DeGeneres: Pickup for third season. That's right.
Hilary Duff: Thank you, we did. My hair was, like, so long. I just... whacked it off. And I'm also a bit of an Instagram troller, so I just find these, like, crazy colors, and I'm, like, "I want to do that. I want to be a part of that. I want to be cool."
Ellen DeGeneres: And what is this? Is this a pink?
Hilary Duff: I mean, purplish-pink.
Ellen DeGeneres: Yeah. And how long does it stay before it washes out?
Hilary Duff: It's always, like, you never know, but probably, like, a month. They make you a conditioner with color in it, and then you can, like, slap that on your dry hair, and it'll last a little longer.
Ellen DeGeneres: How long ago did you do that?
Hilary Duff: Like, two weeks ago. When Luca saw it, he--
Ellen DeGeneres: Yeah, your son. How old is he?
Hilary Duff: He's gonna be four in a month. And when I told him I was doing it, he was, like, "Okay," but when I came home, he was, like, "Well, why is it not rainbow?" Like, he was mad I didn't have full rainbow hair. I'm, like, "This took five hours, okay?" Yeah, he's awesome. So funny. He's adorable.
Ellen DeGeneres: Wait a minute. That took five hours?
Hilary Duff: Yes. Girl, yes.
Ellen DeGeneres: It's just a wash, isn't it? It's like a rinse.
Hilary Duff: No. I have to, like, bleach my whole hair--head. Is that good English? The hair?
Ellen DeGeneres: Yeah, you shouldn't bleach your head because that would be terrible. You should just focus on the hair.
Hilary Duff: Bleach my hair. And then they put, like, the pink purple on top. And it's quite the process.
Ellen DeGeneres: Wow.
Hilary Duff: You know how these things go.
Ellen DeGeneres: I didn't kn-- Well, even coloring your hair, like Biolage and all that is, like, an hour and a half. But five hours, wow. So he wanted your hair to be rainbow.
Hilary Duff: Yes. He's obsessed with rainbows right now, and when I told him he was doing it, he was, like, "I like it, but ugh, it's not rainbow." I was, like, "Wow, he's disappointed in my hair color."
Ellen DeGeneres: He is gorgeous. That's adorable.
Hilary Duff: Yeah, he is awesome.
Ellen DeGeneres: Then why don't you do his hair rainbow?
Hilary Duff: You know what? He's not, like, such a risk-taker like that. I asked if he wanted to.
Ellen DeGeneres: You and Mike, by the way, I should say, 'cause you're no longer with your husband, right?
Hilary Duff: Right.
Ellen DeGeneres: But y'all are, like, really doing it right. You're friends. And raising your son. And it's very friendly. And I think that's the way that it should be.
Hilary Duff: And it's normal. I think that, you know, we have such a great kid, and we're both so obsessed with him. And we are good friends, and we laugh a lot. And we, you know, have a great communication. We share stories and pictures when we're not, you know, when one is not with Luca and yeah, he's great, we're great...
Ellen DeGeneres: Good.
Hilary Duff: And we're just-- we keep on truckin'.