What is child custody and how is it determined?

Child custody is the legal term for who takes care of a child after they’re born or adopted. Parenting time can refer to the physical placement of the child with one parent, but it can also refer to decision-making responsibilities over a child.

Sometimes, child custody can be one of the most challenging parts of a divorce. Often, the father of a child is the one who has to give up their time with their children. Child custody can be very temporary or permanent in its duration.

In a nutshell, child custody is determined over the children of a divorce. It can be shared by both parents or awarded to one by a court. In some states, this is called “marital,” which means both parents are being judged in an equitable way in regard to that child.

This is important because when judges make this decision, they must consider all aspects of parenting and how beneficial each parent will be to the children’s lives after their separation and eventual divorce.

Sometimes you might need the strong support of an experienced divorce lawyer to get the child custody of your child during a divorce.

Connecticut divorce lawyer: Broder Orland Murray & DeMattie LLC, one of the largest family law-focused firms in Connecticut, offers sophisticated and individually focused client services, family law, and child custody attorneys.

There are different types of child custody.

For now, let’s now look more into the differences between legal child custody and physical child custody.

Legal Child Custody vs. Physical Child Custody

Legal custody is the legal term for who can make decisions regarding a child, including who the child will live with and how much time they will spend. Physical custody is how much time a child lives with one parent and what that parent does during that time.

Physical custody usually depends on how long the parents were married and whether or not there was joint or sole physical custody.

Sometimes shared physical custody allows for one parent to have overall visitation rights of the child by denying them only certain areas of the home, such as a bedroom, nursery, playroom, or high chair.

Moreover, legal custody is usually awarded to the parent who has been married longer and also the parent who works or studies more than the other. The other parent might get to see their child every day, while their former spouse can only see their child occasionally over a certain period of time.

Legal custody is also important in custody cases involving children who have special needs, such as a diagnosis with autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or cerebral palsy.

The judge will decide which one of these two parents will be awarded legal custody of a child.