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Child custody terms and schedules: What you need to know

On Behalf of | Jan 20, 2025 | Divorce

One of the fears many parents have after they have decided to divorce is losing their children.

There are two broad topics to understand when discussing the custody of children: child custody terms and custody schedules. Understanding the following terms can make these discussions more informed.

4 terms to learn when discussing child custody

There are four particularly important terms that may be useful to know when discussing child custody. These terms can help parents negotiate custody that best suits them and their child’s well-being. These four terms include:

  1. Legal custody: This kind of custody determines how much control parents have to decide what is best for their children. Parents with legal custody make decisions for their children, including how they receive their education, what type of medical care they receive or whether they are raised in a religious setting. Legal custody can greatly affect a child’s upbringing.
  2. Physical custody: This kind of custody determines where a child lives. Parents with physical custody may be responsible for providing for their child’s basic needs (clothing, food, shelter, etc.) and maintaining their daily routine (going to school or medical appointments).
  3. Joint custody: Parents can split legal and physical custody. This allows both parents to partake in their child’s life, raise their child daily, provide for their child’s needs and define their upbringing.
  4. Sole custody: A single parent may be given legal and physical custody. This parent may be entirely responsible for raising their child. The other parent may be given very few options to stay involved in their child’s life.

Whether parents work together or raise their child alone, parents may use these terms to help decide how they want to raise their children after a divorce.

Creating a custody schedule that fits your family’s needs

If parents share custody of their child, they may need to create a custody schedule. Custody schedules help parents maintain daily physical custody obligations. Parents can use custody schedules to rotate the days each parent spends with their children. A custody schedule may be split evenly so each parent spends the same amount of time with their children. For some families, a custody schedule may allow one parent to spend more time with their child than the other.

Legal guidance can help parents explore their child custody options after a divorce. After all, every family’s needs and circumstances are unique.

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