The Custody of Infants Act of 1839 was an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

. The bill was greatly influenced by the reformist opinions of Caroline Norton. Norton had a failed marriage with her husband. Her pamphlets arguing for the natural right of mothers to have custody of their children won much sympathy among parliamentarians. The need for the reform in the custody of children area had already been the subject of parliamentary actions before 1839. However, because of Norton's intense campaigning, Parliament passed the Custody of Infants Act 1839 and included there many of her reformist ideas. This changed dramatically the way that custody of the children after divorce was granted. If previously in the majority of the cases the child custody was awarded to the father, the Custody of Infants Act of 1839 permitted a mother to petition the courts for custody of her children up to the age of seven, and for access in respect of older children. This was the starting point of a new doctrine in the area of child custody, called

Tender years doctrine The tender years doctrine is a legal principle in family law since the late 19th century. In common law, it presumes that during a child's "tender" years (generally regarded as the age of four and under), the mother should have custody of the ch ...

. The 1839 Act was repealed and replaced by the

Custody of Infants Act 1873 The Custody of Infants Act 1873 (36 & 37 Vict. c. 12) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British ...

References

External links

* http://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/relationships/overview/custodyrights/ * http://www.spartacus-educational.com/Wcustody39.htm * http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1839/jul/18/custody-of-infants#s3v0049p0_18390718_hol_62 United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1839 Family law in the United Kingdom {{UK-statute-stub