What is a Child Custody Agreement?

A Child Custody Agreement addresses:

A Child Custody Agreement is different from a Parenting Plan because it only deals with legal and physical custody and sole or joint custody. A Parenting Plan deals with how to raise the child and includes detailed schedules, arrangements, and plans. A Child Custody Agreement can be agreed to by the parents or ordered by the judge if the parents can’t agree or if contact by one parent could be harmful to the child.

Both parents can have joint legal or physical custody or one parent can have sole legal or physical custody or any combination. If parents share joint custody but one parent makes decisions without including the other, a judge can be asked to enforce the joint custody agreement and order that parent to share decision-making. If that parent still refuses to share decision-making the judge can hold that parent in contempt of court and take away joint custody rights.

Physical Custody
A parent who has physical custody has the right to have the child live with him or her. If one parent has sole physical custody the other parent usually has the right to visit the child.

Legal Custody
Issues such as a child’s place of residence, education, medical care, and religious beliefs are controlled by legal custody. If one parent has sole legal custody he or she may make decisions without the involvement of the other parent.

Sole Custody
Sole custody may be for either legal or physical custody or both. Sole custody allows one parent to make decisions without the involvement of the other parent. The position least favored by judges is where sole custody is given to one parent with a visitation schedule for the other.

Sole custody is granted primarily where the parents are uncooperative or there is evidence that one parent or a new partner has behavior that may be dangerous to the child. Some of these behaviors include drug or alcohol addiction, physical or sexual abuse, child neglect or current criminal behavior.

Joint Custody
Joint custody is where both parents have equal power in deciding the future of the child. Judges favor joint custody so that the child sees both parents having a role in parenting. Where one parent lives far away from the child it is not feasible to have joint physical custody.

Joint custody can be agreed by both parents or ordered by the judge if the parents are separated, divorced, separated, don’t live together or never lived together.

KidsFirst! Child Custody Agreements
Use KidsFirst! to get expert legal tips and parenting advice for decisions about sensitive issues like religion, housing, drugs, alcohol, and parent contact. Learn about the legal and physical aspects of child custody rights and responsibilities. Get a clear understanding of how life and parenting will change with new living situations, expense sharing, parenting roles, and other factors.

Parents can work together for the benefit of the child by sharing custody or attempt to limit the rights of the other parent by seeking sole custody. Find out why judges favor joint custody where parents equally share parenting and learn the risks when one parent seeks sole custody without a good reason or justification.