The Development of the Application of the Law on Child Custody Post-divorce

Lawsuits regarding child custody post-divorce are frequently filed in religious courts. In practice, after a divorce, each spouse who wishes to have custody of their child files a child custody lawsuit in the Religious Court. The Compilation of the Islamic Law (KHI) is one of the legal bases for the judges’ decisions. Currently, judges are experiencing many changes and developments in determining child custody. The decision about who will care for the child is no longer solely based on the normative provisions in Article 105, letter A of the KHI. This research explores the development of the application of child custody law post-divorce. This study is classified as library research since the data used is obtained from the secondary sources of legal and written materials. The nature of this research is descriptive, as it presents data qualitatively and narratively. The results of this research indicate that the development of the application of child custody law post-divorce includes the following: The first application is the enforcement of legal norms regarding the custody of underage children, which is entrusted to the biological mother. The second application is the enforcement of legal norms that consider the welfare and best interests, as well as the peace and comfort of the child. The third application is the enforcement of legal norms that consider the behavior and good faith of the child custodian. The fourth application is the enforcement of legal norms that consider children who have reached the age of discernment (mumayiz) in determining custody choices. The fifth application is the enforcement of legal norms that consider the apostasy of parents, whether the father or mother, as a reason for losing custody rights.