離婚後親權酌定事件中的子女最佳利益

The Best Interests of the Child in Child Custody Adjudication

我國關於父母離婚後未成年子女權利義務行使負擔之規範，自從1996年民法修正之後，以「子女最佳利益原則」作為最高指導原則，迄今已超過二十年。在大法官以釋字第365號解釋宣告修正前民法第1089條之父權優先條款違憲之後，民法親屬編逐漸朝向以保障子女最佳利益與性別平等的方向發展。在此一趨勢下，父母離婚後未成年子女權利義務行使負擔之規範，也脫離父權優先原則，修正為父母未為協議或協議不成時，法院得依聲請或依職權為子女利益進行酌定。

For more than two decades, since the traditional patriarchal rules were pronounced unconstitutional and replaced by provisions enshrining gender equality and children's interests in the late 1990s, the best interests of the child standard has been the legal principle for resolving child custody disputes between parents in Taiwan. Although the courts are required to consider a number of factors, including the conditions of the child and parents as well as their interactions, the vagueness of the standard nevertheless gives judges broad discretion to decide what is best for the child. This article aims to clarify how the courts interpret the best interests of the child standard in practice and to discuss the impact of judicial preferences in the context of the Taiwanese family.