Custody
The biggest, deepest topic in most divorces. Legal vs. physical, joint vs. sole, parenting plans, visitation, move-aways, modifications, and what to do when the other parent makes it hard.
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A curated path through custody, picked so the next article builds on the last.
- Legal custody vs. physical custody — the difference that matters mostThe two kinds of custody, how they combine, and what 'joint legal, primary physical' actually looks like day-to-day.4-minute read
- Joint vs sole custody — what each really meansJoint and sole each apply to both legal and physical custody, which makes four combinations. Here’s what each one looks like in real life.5-minute read
- Parenting plans: the document that runs your post-divorce lifeSchedule, decision-making, transitions, holidays — your parenting plan is what gets enforced. Here’s what goes into one and why specifics matter.5-minute read
- Parenting schedules: the patterns most families end up with2-2-3, 50/50, every-other-weekend — the most common parenting-time patterns, what each looks like, and how to pick the one that fits your kids.5-minute read
- Shared physical custody schedules: 2-2-3, 5-5, week-on-week-offWalkthroughs of the main 50/50 schedules, what each fits, the logistics that decide whether shared custody actually works, and when to switch.5-minute read
- Holiday parenting schedules: who gets which days, year after yearThanksgiving, Christmas, Mother’s Day, school breaks — the templates and alternations parenting plans use to allocate holidays year after year.5-minute read
- ‘Best interest of the child’: the standard every custody decision usesThe legal standard behind every custody decision — what factors courts actually weigh, what they emphasize, and where the discretion lives.5-minute read
- Co-parenting communication tools that hold up in courtOurFamilyWizard, TalkingParents, AppClose — the features that matter, when courts order them, and how to pick the right tool for your situation.5-minute read
- Co-parenting with a difficult ex: practical tactics that hold upWhen the other parent is uncooperative, manipulative, or actively undermining the parenting plan — what works, what backfires, and when to escalate.5-minute read
- Parental alienation: what it is, what it isn’t, and what courts doThe behaviors that count, what the research actually says, the available remedies, and when the term is being misused as a litigation tactic.5-minute read
- Moving with the kids: when you can, when you can'tRelocation rules — how far you can move with the kids without permission, how to ask for it, and what courts look at when they decide.5-minute read
- Modifying a custody order: when and howCustody isn't permanent. When courts will revisit an existing order, what counts as a 'substantial change in circumstances,' and the procedural cost.5-minute read
The full library
Everything else in custody.
Custody
Custody evaluations: what they are and how to prepare
What the court-appointed evaluator does, who they interview, what they look for, the cost and timeline, and how to prepare without performing.
5-minute read
Custody
Guardians ad litem and children’s attorneys
The two professionals courts appoint when kids need representation — what each does, when they’re used, what they cost, and how to work with them.
5-minute read
Custody
When a teenager’s custody preference matters
The legal framework, state-by-state age thresholds, in-camera interviews, what courts weigh, and what consistently makes things worse.
5-minute read