Ruling lets divorced parents swap child each year

BOSTON - A divorced couple will rotate custody of their son under an Appeals Court decision that eliminates what the father's attorney called the notion of a main parent and a visiting one.

Under the unusual arrangement, Ippolita Freedman will have son Alex, 7, during the school week for one year, and Roger Freedman will have him on weekends. The next year, they'll switch. The rotation will continue as the boy grows up.

''Our hope is that this ruling does show a trend toward really focusing on the needs of the children,'' said attorney Elizabeth Lewis, who represented Roger Freedman. ''Every child has a right to equal access to the parent, unless there is something wrong with the parent.''

Both parents had asked for sole custody. The state Probate and Family Court crafted the rotating custody plan, and the mother appealed.

Judge Rudolph Kass, writing for the appeals court, upheld the lower court ruling Tuesday but acknowledged potential problems if one parent moves.

James DeGiacomo, the mother's attorney, said she is concerned that the decision will limit her client's career.

''It wasn't in the best interest of the child,'' DeGiacomo told the Globe. ''When a parent is unsettled, that has to have an impact.''

DeGiacomo did not immediately return a phone call Wednesday about whether the mother will appeal the new ruling.

Roger Freedman, 49, lives in Wellesley. Ippolita Freedman, 30, lives in Brookline, a few miles away. The boy will attend the same school regardless of where he is living.

Fatherhood Coalition attorney David Grossack applauded the decision.

''It appears as though the appeals court is trying to develop some sensitivity to the needs of the father, and the need for a father,'' he told the Globe.