What Happened to Custody?

For a long time, the terms joint and sole custody were used to describe both the decision making authority over children and where the children lived the majority of their time. Now, the law has changed, to the allocation of parenting time and decision making responsibilities. The change in the law allows families to make craft more flexible and practical agreements, but parents may still use the word “custody.”  We want to explain briefly the change in the law. 

First, decision making responsibilities are divided into four different categories: education, religion, medical care, and extracurricular activities. Parents can share joint or sole decision making differently in each category. Second, parenting time is the determination of where the child will primarily reside and what the parenting time schedule will be. Decision-making and parenting time are analyzed with specific and different factors. 

If parents cannot come to an agreement as to decision making or parenting time, then the next step will be mediation, and if still not successful, the Court may appoint a child representative or guardian ad litem. For more information on mediation and court appointed attorneys, see our website. 

The Law Office of Erin M. Wilson has experience in all types of parenting agreements, from parents who share equal parenting time, to situations where restrictions must be put in place for the safety of the child. The Law Office of Erin M. Wilson is able to develop solutions in even the most difficult cases to help parties come to an agreement. The Law Office of Erin M. Wilson also provides mediation services to help individuals reach an amicable settlement. Even if a solution is not a viable option, Erin will aggressively pursue your best interests and your child’s in court. Erin has experience as both a guardian ad litem and a child representative and is familiar with the process of involving one or the other in order to serve the best interest of the child.

NOTICE: This blog is intended solely for informational purposes and should not be construed as providing legal advice. Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have regarding this blog post.