While shared and joint custody sound the same, they are not. Custody choices can be confusing, and you want to ensure that you are choosing the right thing when it comes to your children. Read on for some explanations of the main child custody choices and what to expect.

Legal Custody

It's possible to have legal custody of a child but not physical custody. Legal custody gives both parents equal access to major matters like child discipline, education decisions, healthcare issues, and more. That means that one parent may take care of the child for the majority of the time but both parents should be in on making big decisions about the child. 

The only time that both parents do not have legal custody of a child is when one parent has had their parental rights removed by a judge. That can happen when a parent commits serious crimes, has committed child abuse, is incarcerated, or has abandoned the child. When a parent loses legal custody, they also lose any chance to have custody or visitation. They have no legal access to the child.

Shared Custody

Shared and joint custody are both types of physical custody and assume that the other parent has legal custody and will participate in visitation or custodial arrangements.

Shared custody may also be referred to as 50/50 custody, and that term provides a good description of how this form of custody works. The child will reside with each parent approximately 50% of the time. The parents should set the division of time up in advance. For instance, most parents split the week by 3.5 days unless it interferes with school. Some parents may use a different schedule during holidays. The split does not necessarily need to be exactly 50/50.

Joint custody is probably the most traditional method of custody. One parent will be the sole physical custodian of the child, and the other parent will take part in visitation. The visitation can be generous or strict; that is up to the parents. However, judges won't approve plans that deprive the child of spending time with a parent.

Bird's Nesting

One more seldom used form of custody is bird's nest or nesting. The reason it's seldom used is that it calls for having three living situations, and that can be expensive. The child remains in a single location while each parent moves in and out as they follow a schedule. The usual schedule is a few weeks with one parent and a few weeks with the other parent. The benefit is that the child remains in one place, which may be less disruptive than the other forms of custody. However, you must consider the disruption to the parent's life as well.

Contact a service provider like Tri Cities Law Group to learn more.