By Hope Ocampo

It is a legal term that refers to the right of a person to make decisions about the care and welfare of child such as decisions about education, health care and religious training.

Child Custody

Child custody is a matter of concern which is highly disputed in most divorce cases. There are different types of custody: legal or physical custody, which can either be sole or joint.

Legal Custody

Legal custody refers to the one who will be making the vital decisions for minors. A parent with legal custody may make decisions for his/her child regarding education, religion, and health. In many cases, both parents can have legal custody of a child. But in those specific cases where communication is hindered between parents or clear disagreement concerning custody matters exists, legal custody can be given to a sole parent. One must take note that even if two parents fail to see eye to eye on one matter, they may both have legal custody pertaining to other matters.

For instance, one parent may want a child to be Christian while the other parent comes from the Muslim faith. In cases such as these, the court can come in and decide which parent will decide upon the childs religion, but this doesnt mean that the parents cannot both be responsible for further legal custody matters.

Physical Custody

Physical custody pertains to where your child will live. If you and the other parent fail to come to an agreement with regard to where your child will reside, the court will have to come in and make a decision after considering the factors involved.

Normally, when joint physical custody between two parents is contested, the court may grant simply one parent physical custody. The visitation rights of the other parent may then be used in order for him/her to take part in the parenting duties. When one parent is granted physical custody, its important that proper schedules for visitation are arranged in order to meet the best requirements for the child. Again, courts may have to butt in and arrange visitation when the parents cannot come to an agreement with regard to possible schedules. The court will consider school activities, holidays, and also the summer period in creating a schedule which has the best interests of the child in mind. It has been observed that children who are of younger ages need to feel the regular presence of each parent in their lives more often, so parents may even share a child during a week. But when they are older they can live with one parent for a longer period of time without feeling uncomfortable or sad.

To learn more about divorce, please visit Divorce Guide.

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