What is “child custody”?

• Child custody deals with who will have custody (guardianship, keeping, or care) of a child or children, especially in the case of a divorce or separation.  more

Divorce can be an earth-shattering event for children, creating feelings of loss, confusion, fear, anger, and resentment. Several recent psychological studies indicate that children can experience these effects for years, and it can affect how children, once grown, approach their own marriages and childrearing. In addition to the psychological effects, divorce can have economic effects on children. Children often suffer a change after a divorce, sometimes financially, almost always emotionally. Divorce is not common in the India. A quoted statistic is that "almost half of all marriages end in divorce." That leaves a lot of children enduring the effects of divorce. Child custody laws throughout the India seek to provide some sense of order to the disruption of divorce and separation in efforts to smooth over this transition from a unified, nuclear family to a two-household family, with the spouses/parents living separate and apart. One parent, generally termed the "custodial parent," ...  more

Child custody is a term used in family law courts to define legal guardianship of a child under the age of 18. During divorce or marriage annulment proceedings, the issue of child custody often becomes a matter for the court to determine. In most cases, both parents continue to share legal child custody but one parent gains physical custody. Family law courts generally base decisions on the best interests of the child or children, not always on the best arguments of each parent. Child custody laws are almost always created and enforced by individual states, not the federal government. This means a family court judge in Georgia may use a different standard for evaluating the fitness of a parent than a judge in Massachusetts. Most states also allow for independent legal representation for the minor(s) involved in a child custody hearing. Petitions for child custody can also be entered by grandparents, great-grandparents or non-relatives who have acted in the capacity of parent to the ...  more

Child custody is a term that refers to the bundle of rights and responsibilities that a parent carries with respect to his/her child. Child custody includes numerous concepts, some of which overlap and some that are distinct. The term child custody can be further broken down into terms that shed additional light and provide a greater understanding of the respective parents rights and obligations with respect to their common child.  more

In the case of divorce, generally, the court having jurisdiction of the divorce proceedings at times also determines who shall have custody of the child or children from the marriage. Under the common statutory provision, the parents of a child or children born within a marriage are joint guardians of that child and the rights of both parents are equal--each parent has an equal right to the custody of the child when they separate. Custody is the charge and control of a child- including the right to make all major decisions such as education, religious upbringing, training, health and welfare. Custody usually refers to a combination of physical custody and legal custody. Many factors influence an award of custody and the way a case is presented in court can have a large impact on the result for you and your children. If you are awarded the children as a primary custodial parent, it has far reaching consequences both to you and to their well-being and development. Should I hire a Child ...  more