In the Best Interests of the Child: Kant's Influence on Child Custody Rulings in Tennessee

Abstract

This work provides a detailed analysis of Immanuel Kant’s deontological ethics, Tennessee family laws and the correlation between the two. The laws that are in effect today have an undeniable foundation in philosophical theories. To have an understanding of where laws derive from is a beneficial and useful tool while applying them to the citizens they influence. This study aims to explain a clearer picture of reasoning for such domestic laws and their similarities to the foundation of Kantian deontology. In doing so, the subject of deontology will be explored, and more specifically, Immanuel Kant’s application of deontology.