Increase in Investigation Requests from Men Due to "Joint Custody"
Following the implementation of the joint custody system, men's anxiety about parental rights during divorce has decreased, leading to a significant increase in requests for infidelity investigations. In FY2025, approximately half of all investigation requests came from men, marking about a 12% increase in male consultants compared to two years prior. This indicates a growing trend of men taking the initiative in divorce proceedings.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 12, 2026 at 23:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 12, 2026 at 14:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 12, 2026 at 14:56 (24 min after Collected)
The joint custody system began on April 1, 2026. It is believed that the option of joint custody will reduce disputes between parents over parental rights during divorce, but its impact is also evident in the gender ratio of individuals requesting investigations from detective agencies.
Noriko Itabashi
Deputy Manager, Consultation Department, RCL Co., Ltd.
Certified Counselor, NPO Japan Family Issues Counseling Federation
Industrial Counselor
Joined RCL after working as an English conversation instructor, airport staff, and mental clinic counselor.
Handles over 1,000 consultations annually.
**Before implementation, many men gave up on parental rights**
Since the revised law concerning joint custody was enacted on May 17, 2024 (promulgated on May 24), there has been an increasing trend in "requests for infidelity investigations of wives" from men who often "gave up on obtaining parental rights," believing it was difficult for fathers to secure them.
In FY2023, the ratio was women 6: men 4.
However, in 2025...
**By FY2025, approximately half were men! The number of male consultants increased by about 12% compared to two years ago!**
Many men hesitated to conduct investigations for fear that if they obtained evidence of their wife's infidelity, she would become angry and "stop letting them see their children." However, with the option of "joint custody," the anxiety of "not being able to obtain parental rights" disappeared, leading to an increase in men who want to firmly secure evidence of infidelity and "take the initiative in divorcing or not divorcing."
**Has joint custody changed men? Let's introduce actual consultations.**
(※Age, family composition, etc., have been changed to protect privacy)
**Case (1) Mr. A (34 years old, male, civil servant, 3 children)**
**[Request Details]**
Married for 10 years. His wife's outings have increased in the past six months. There were also suspicious behaviors such as taking her mobile phone into the bath.
He requested an investigation as he suspected his wife was having an affair by leaving their children with her parents when he was on night duty.
**[Investigation Results]**
After leaving the children with her parents, his wife secretly met with a high school classmate. Evidence of infidelity was obtained. It was also found that she was having affairs with two other men besides this classmate.
**[What's next?]**
"Since I found out she was having affairs with three men, I've decided to divorce. However, I will not bring up divorce until joint custody can be chosen! I will definitely not give up on my children," he said.
Afterward, Mr. A pretended to be calm without confronting his wife.
"Since the joint custody system has been implemented, I am currently consulting with a lawyer to claim damages from both my wife and her lovers, and simultaneously proceed with divorce discussions."
**Case (2) Mr. Y (46 years old, male, company employee, 2 children)**
**[Request Details]**
Married for 14 years. He works remotely and has actively participated in childcare. However, after changing jobs a year ago, his wife started returning home late, and her outings with friends on holidays increased, leading him to seek investigation consultation. Her underwear became flashy, and she appeared to be LINE messaging with a man at home, indicating a high possibility of infidelity.
**[Investigation Results]**
From the start of the consultation, Mr. Y stated, "I absolutely do not want to give up parental rights. I spend more time with my children than my wife because I work remotely. I want to divorce my wife." As expected, his wife was having an affair with a male colleague, and evidence was obtained.
**[What's next?]**
"I will firmly claim damages from both my wife and her lover. I originally wanted sole custody, but I will take custody and care, and it seems an agreement can be reached through joint custody. I cannot forgive my wife's infidelity, but we will cooperate as parents for our children in the future."
**Joint custody protects? Husband's position and children's mental health**
Under the conventional sole custody system, one parent inevitably loses parental rights during divorce, which sometimes led to children becoming mentally unstable due to fierce battles between parents.
With the implementation of this "joint custody" system, we only hope that fewer people will endure their partner's infidelity for the sake of "parental rights," and fewer children will be hurt by parental disputes.
**※About our survey**
Survey period: May 2023 - April 2024, May 2025 - April 2026
Survey method: Monitor questionnaire
Age group: 10s to 70s
Gender: Male and female (no distinction)
Number of samples collected: 10,393
Noriko Itabashi
Deputy Manager, Consultation Department, RCL Co., Ltd.
Certified Counselor, NPO Japan Family Issues Counseling Federation
Industrial Counselor
Joined RCL after working as an English conversation instructor, airport staff, and mental clinic counselor.
Handles over 1,000 consultations annually.
**Before implementation, many men gave up on parental rights**
Since the revised law concerning joint custody was enacted on May 17, 2024 (promulgated on May 24), there has been an increasing trend in "requests for infidelity investigations of wives" from men who often "gave up on obtaining parental rights," believing it was difficult for fathers to secure them.
In FY2023, the ratio was women 6: men 4.
However, in 2025...
**By FY2025, approximately half were men! The number of male consultants increased by about 12% compared to two years ago!**
Many men hesitated to conduct investigations for fear that if they obtained evidence of their wife's infidelity, she would become angry and "stop letting them see their children." However, with the option of "joint custody," the anxiety of "not being able to obtain parental rights" disappeared, leading to an increase in men who want to firmly secure evidence of infidelity and "take the initiative in divorcing or not divorcing."
**Has joint custody changed men? Let's introduce actual consultations.**
(※Age, family composition, etc., have been changed to protect privacy)
**Case (1) Mr. A (34 years old, male, civil servant, 3 children)**
**[Request Details]**
Married for 10 years. His wife's outings have increased in the past six months. There were also suspicious behaviors such as taking her mobile phone into the bath.
He requested an investigation as he suspected his wife was having an affair by leaving their children with her parents when he was on night duty.
**[Investigation Results]**
After leaving the children with her parents, his wife secretly met with a high school classmate. Evidence of infidelity was obtained. It was also found that she was having affairs with two other men besides this classmate.
**[What's next?]**
"Since I found out she was having affairs with three men, I've decided to divorce. However, I will not bring up divorce until joint custody can be chosen! I will definitely not give up on my children," he said.
Afterward, Mr. A pretended to be calm without confronting his wife.
"Since the joint custody system has been implemented, I am currently consulting with a lawyer to claim damages from both my wife and her lovers, and simultaneously proceed with divorce discussions."
**Case (2) Mr. Y (46 years old, male, company employee, 2 children)**
**[Request Details]**
Married for 14 years. He works remotely and has actively participated in childcare. However, after changing jobs a year ago, his wife started returning home late, and her outings with friends on holidays increased, leading him to seek investigation consultation. Her underwear became flashy, and she appeared to be LINE messaging with a man at home, indicating a high possibility of infidelity.
**[Investigation Results]**
From the start of the consultation, Mr. Y stated, "I absolutely do not want to give up parental rights. I spend more time with my children than my wife because I work remotely. I want to divorce my wife." As expected, his wife was having an affair with a male colleague, and evidence was obtained.
**[What's next?]**
"I will firmly claim damages from both my wife and her lover. I originally wanted sole custody, but I will take custody and care, and it seems an agreement can be reached through joint custody. I cannot forgive my wife's infidelity, but we will cooperate as parents for our children in the future."
**Joint custody protects? Husband's position and children's mental health**
Under the conventional sole custody system, one parent inevitably loses parental rights during divorce, which sometimes led to children becoming mentally unstable due to fierce battles between parents.
With the implementation of this "joint custody" system, we only hope that fewer people will endure their partner's infidelity for the sake of "parental rights," and fewer children will be hurt by parental disputes.
**※About our survey**
Survey period: May 2023 - April 2024, May 2025 - April 2026
Survey method: Monitor questionnaire
Age group: 10s to 70s
Gender: Male and female (no distinction)
Number of samples collected: 10,393