If you are in the process of separating from your child’s other parent, one of the main issues you will have to address is child custody. There are two types of custody: legal and physical.
- Legal custody: A parent with legal custody has the right to make decisions regarding the child’s medical care, education, religious upbringing, extracurricular activities, etc.
- Physical custody: A parent with physical custody will have the child in their care for a specified amount of time.
In many cases, Pennsylvania courts would prefer both parents to share legal and physical custody. However, there are situations where it makes sense or is best for the child for only one parent to have custody. For example, if one parent is physically or mentally unable to care for the child or has a history of acting abusive or neglectful toward the child, the court may grant the other parent sole custody.
A custody order specifies the terms of the child custody arrangement. This order can be obtained through the court system or by agreement of the parents.
Shared physical custody does not necessarily mean the child will spend exactly 50% of their time with each parent, but many arrangements get close to that 50-50 split. There are several possible shared custody arrangements but the most common ones include:
- Alternating weeks (One week with Parent A followed by one week with Parent B).
- 2-2-5-5 (Typically, Monday through Wednesday with Parent A, Wednesday through Friday with Parent B and then alternating Friday through Monday) 2:2:3 (Two days with Parent A, then two days with Parent B, then three days with Parent A, then the next week is Two days with Parent B, two days with Parent A and the weekend with Parent A.).
In addition to specifying a custody schedule, a custody order will also provide information regarding decision-making, communication between the parents, transportation of the children and a holiday and vacation schedule.