Many parents going through divorce have to consider how their children are raised in two households. Each parent’s rights can be outlined in a child custody arrangement.
Child custody is divided into physical and legal custody. Physical custody determines where a child lives the majority of the time and which parent is responsible for providing for their child’s needs. Legal custody is each parent’s right to decide their child’s upbringing, such as where their child goes to school or which doctor they see.
Child custody can be arranged in several different ways. The type of child custody each parent has can often depend on each parent’s unique situation and ability to provide for their child’s needs. Here are some options:
Joint custody and parallel parenting
Parents can share physical and legal custody in a joint arrangement. Many courts believe that joint custody is the best option for parents and children. When parents share custody, they can work together to decide what is best for their children and how often each parent will care for their children.
If parents can not cooperate but want to share custody, parents can “parallel parent.” Parallel parenting gives each parent more autonomy and can limit the ways they communicate. As such, parents can reduce fighting and conflicts that would upset their children.
Sole custody and visitation
If a parent is not seen fit to raise their child or does not want to be involved in their child’s life, the other parent could be given sole custody. Sole custody means that one parent has their child the majority of the time and is responsible for providing for their needs.
The other parent could gain visitation time. Visitation can mean that a parent can spend some time with their children at specific times, often supervised.
Parents can seek legal help as they go through their divorce to learn about their parenting plan options and which sort of custody arrangement will best fit their family’s needs.
