What is the difference between physical and legal custody?

Physical and legal custody refer to different aspects of parents’ rights and responsibilities for a child in California. Physical custody is the right to have a child live with a parent, or for a parent to have a child visit on a regular basis. Legal custody is more about the decision-making process for a child’s care. Legal custody refers to the rights of a parent to make decisions regarding the child’s education, healthcare, welfare, and other important matters in their life. Under California law, both types of custody can be shared, where both parents share in the physical and legal responsibilities of raising their child, or one parent can be awarded sole physical and legal custody. Shared physical custody means that a child lives with both parents on a regular basis and that each parent must have frequent and continuing contact with their child. With shared legal custody, both parents have the right to make decisions regarding their child’s care. Sole physical custody means that a child resides with one parent and the other parent has visitation rights on a regular basis. With sole legal custody, only one parent makes all of the decisions regarding the child’s care, such as education, healthcare, and welfare. In any case, the court will always make a decision based on the best interests of the child when deciding custody arrangements. This means that the court will consider the age of the child, the parent’s mental and physical health, any drug or alcohol use, and the child’s relationship with both parents.

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What is the difference between physical and legal custody?

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