There is a difference between legal child custody and physical child custody. Often this terminology is confused, which can lead to disputes when parents are trying to make major decisions affecting the child. Legal custody essentially means decision making. Physical custody, on the other hand, is where the child physically is – which parent they are spending the night with.
Most parents will share joint legal custody of their child. Thus, they will have equal input into decisions that are made for the child’s upbringing – what school they will attend, where they will go to the dentist, what church they will go to, and what sport they will play in the Fall. Sometimes, parents are not able to agree with each other on these types of issues. This is often the biggest area where disputes arise between parents after an order has been set in place. Some orders contain icebreaker language, which provides that the parents shall work together to make major decision, but that one parent will ultimately have the final decision making authority. Other orders will provide that the parents are each able to make decisions for different issues – dad, for example, may make all educational decisions, while mom makes all medical decisions. Another option is to force the parties to attend binding arbitration (sort of like a private trial) in the event they are unable to reach an agreement on a major decision. So – what does it mean to have legal custody of my child? How does this impact my relationship with my child? Legal custody provides you with the opportunity to actively provide input and make decisions on how your child is to be raised. Unless one parent is not interested, not involved, or simply unfit to make decisions for the child, this is almost always shared jointly. Regardless of what and how parties feel about each other, it is almost always in the child’s best interest to work together to make joint decisions on their upbringing. If you need to speak with an experienced family law attorney, please contact Adkins Law. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville and primarily serves Mecklenburg County and the Lake Norman area.
15 Comments
8/8/2019 12:16:26 pm
Thank you for explaining that having legal custody of a child means having the right to make decisions about the child's life. My brother is going through a divorce right now. I will make sure to explain this to him and help him find a good family lawyer.
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Chris Adkins
8/8/2019 01:01:40 pm
You're welcome Skyler. Please let us know if you have any questions or if we may be of service.
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6/3/2022 10:54:28 am
My friend is afraid of losing custody of his kids. It makes sense that he might want to get a child custody lawyer to help out with that. I can see how they would be able to set up a good defense for that.
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RIC
6/9/2022 03:02:20 pm
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8/18/2022 02:27:12 am
I'm glad that you talked that the usual situation is both parents could have time with their child. I have a cousin who is hoping to find a child custody attorney as her ex-wife doesn't want him to see my nephew, and he asked me yesterday if I had any idea what would be the best option. Thanks to this enlightening article, I'll be sure to tell him that it will be much better if he consults a trusted child custody attorney as they can help him with the legal process.
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I totally agree when you said that some parents might find it hard to agree to shared custody. In that case, it would be a good idea to hire a child custody attorney for my sister now that she will go separate ways from her partner of three years. They have one child, so it might be complicated to find an arrangement that will make each of them say yes to.
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11/7/2022 11:00:46 pm
Thank you for stating that having legal possession gives you the chance to actively participate in decision-making over how your child will be raised. My friend and her spouse are divorcing; they have a son together. I'll suggest to my friend that she seek guidance from a child support lawyer.
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11/15/2022 05:32:36 pm
Thanks so much for explaining joint custody in family law. My aunt and uncle are getting a divorce and they want to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible. We'll have to look into hiring an attorney to help them with complicated legal issues like this.
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11/26/2022 03:42:57 am
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12/3/2022 06:49:24 am
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1/9/2023 01:54:54 am
Thanks for pointing out that joint legal custody of the child would be the option for most parents. I think that is what my sister wants as well for her son now that her partner and are going their separate ways. They are ending on good terms, so they plan on hiring one family lawyer to help them out if there are legal documents and processes needed to push through with their choice.
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1/9/2023 03:49:24 pm
I thought it was interesting when you mentioned that most parents will share joint legal custody of a child. I would think that in some divorces a parent will try to obtain full custody of a child and make it so that the other parent can't participate. It seems like you would need to work with a lawyer if you are wanting to claim full custody.
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2/24/2023 09:21:20 am
It really helped when you described what it means to have custody of your child and how it affects the kid's life. I heard my cousin wants to get divorced, and she has two kids, so since she's not on great terms with her husband, I think she'd benefit from reading your advice. I appreciate your advice on how legal custody provides the power to make decisions for your kid's best interest.
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3/14/2023 11:19:07 pm
I'm glad that you talked about how legal custody could help implement and gather legal advice for your family solution. I have a cousin hoping to find a child custody attorney as her ex-wife doesn't want him to see my nephew because of their relationship problems. He asked me yesterday if I had any idea what would be the best option for consulting legal assistance. Thanks to this enlightening article, I'll tell him it will be much better if he consults a trusted child custody attorney as they can help him with the legal process.
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Peggy Rothchild
5/29/2023 07:47:51 pm
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