Divorce proceedings can get particularly ugly, but even more so when children are thrown into the middle of them. When one parent is set on winning child custody they are often forced to reveal their former partner's failings or bad behaviors. This is because winning child custody can only occur when one parent is proven to be incapable of providing good and stable care for the children. For example, one parent may have had a history of neglecting or verbally abusing their spouse and their children, or they may have a chronic problem with alcoholism. Such factors are taken into consideration during custody battles. Naturally, this is not the only area in which a parent is assessed, and winning child custody does not occur unless the judge believes it is in the best interest of the child that their other parent has only limited access (or none at all) to them in the future.