Sole custody means that one parent retains the right to make fundamental decisions regarding the upbringing and wellbeing of the child. In this scenario, the non-custodial parent (typically known as the “access parent”) may express an opinion on important issues, and retains the right to be informed of all major decisions, but the custodial parent has the right to make all final decisions.

Joint custody refers to a relationship where both parents share an equal responsibility for decision-making. A key factor to consider in requesting joint custody is that parents should be able to cooperate in order to serve the best interests of their children. This means parties must have the ability to communicate effectively, and be willing and able to set aside conflicts when faced with important parenting decisions. If you and your former spouse or partner are unable to co-parent constructively, a court is unlikely to grant joint custody.

In split custody situations, both parents have sole custody of one or more of the children. For example, daughters of the marriage may live with mother, while sons of the marriage reside with father. This type of custody arrangement is rare, in that courts are not inclined to separate siblings during the process of separation and divorce. Where split custody has been ordered, it is usually because the children are old enough to express an opinion about which parent they wish to live with, and have that opinion given considerable weight by the court.

The term shared custody is often confused with joint custody. In reality, shared custody is a type of access arrangement and does not have anything to do with which parent has legal decision-making power. Shared custody occurs when each parent has the children for at least 40% of the time – in other words, the child’s time is split between the parents roughly equally. Parents can have shared custody whether or not they also have joint custody (joint decision-making power). Shared custody relationships can have a particular impact upon child support, as shared custody arrangements are treated differently under the Child Support Guidelines.