Custody Of Children

The rules of custody have been clearly defined by the Fuqaha. In a case of divorce, the mother gets custody of her son until the age of seven, and in the case of a daughter until the age of nine. Thereafter (after the age of seven where the child is a boy and after the age of nine in a girl), the
father is awarded custody of the children.

The mother may stop the father from taking the children if she wishes; more so if he is involved in such acts of sin and transgression that will have a negative impact on the child. In such a case, the father should be allowed to visit the children at their current place of residing.

If such a situation does not exist (where the father’s conduct has a negative impact on the children’s upbringing), then both parties should preferably work on a mutual agreement as to which weekends or holidays will be spent with the mother and which will be spent with the father, even though a particular parent is entitled to custody at that point of time.