When it comes to children and determining custody it can be so difficult to determine where a child is going to live and what is best for them. Keeping this in mind, there are so many different types of custody agreements that can be put in place and things like physical custody versus legal custody are helpful to get a better idea about. For those that are looking for help, child custody attorneys at Wolfe & Stec can help.
What is Legal Custody?
It is helpful to understand both types of custody before you make a decision about either. Legal custody gives the parent that has it the ability to make decisions on behalf of the child in terms of things like where to live, medical care that they might need, education and religion. This can be a type of custody that you have even if you do not have the child in your physical care for any amount of time.
Legal custody means that you are responsible for making legal decisions for the child to make sure that they are well cared for and to make sure that there is nothing wrong and that there is always someone that would have the ability to make choices for the kids. Legal custody and physical custody, though they do often go hand in hand, are not exclusive, you do not have to have one in order to have the other. One parent can have legal custody while the other has physical custody or you can split physical custody with one parent having sole legal custody.
In most cases, both parents share both legal custody and physical custody and work together to help decide what is going to be best for their children. This type of care is often the most beneficial to both parents and to the child as whomever has the child in their physical custody so that they can make decisions for the child if they do have them at their own home.
What is Physical Custody?
Physical custody is a type of custody in which they have the actual child in their home and take care of them day to day. This is the physical custodian or the person that is going to be taking care of the actual child and not just their legal care. Physical custody is determined by factors like where they live, what type of home they have, what job they have and how well they can take care of the child.
The judge may look at who took care of the child the most when the couple was together. They may look at things like how often they are out of the house, do they work close to home, do they keep long hours and more. When choosing who has physical custody of a child, the judge is going to go to great lengths to make sure that they choose a person that is going to be able to adequately take care of the child and that the child is not going to be put out by the change in caretaker.
How is Custody Determined?
As mentioned before, physical custody and legal custody are not exclusive, you can have one without having the other. This is not a typical arrangement however, as it would be hard for someone with physical custody to take full care of a child if they could not make decisions for them. In the majority of custody cases, if both parties have 50%- 50% care, they will both have the ability to make decisions for the child and they will both have physical care of the child as well.
This is the most common arrangement, but some parents may have a 75-25% split in terms of custody or a 60-40%. It truly does depend on what the judge and the parents decide is going to be best for the child and what is going to work out in the favor of the parents and their ability to continue to co-parent the child. With split custody, most parents are able to make choices and decisions for the child for smaller things like taking a child to get a checkup or taking them on an outing without having to talk with the other parent. In cases of larger or more important things, both parents often work together to figure out what is going to work best and make sure that the decision is in the best interest of the child.
With both physical and legal custody, it can be difficult to figure out what is going on and it can be hard on the children if both parties do not agree on what is done and do not agree on the custody that has been put in place. An attorney is a great resource when it comes to creating a custody agreement that is going to work for both parents and for the child or children in question.
An attorney is going to be able to help you create an agreement that works, an agreement that is useful and easy to follow, and an agreement that can be kept up easily. Your attorney can help you determine what is best for your child, what is legal, and can help you to determine what you can actually ask of the other person or of the agreement. Attorneys are a great resource as they can also help answer any questions you might have regarding custody.
Attorneys are a great option that does help make it easier to get your custody agreement ready and taken care of so that you do not have to worry about what issues might pop up and what issues might arise. An attorney is also a great option if you are looking for a way to speak with your ex and work with them to come to an amicable agreement regarding your child or children and what you want to do regarding custody.
