Types of Child Custody in Washington State

If you share children with someone whom you’re not in a relationship with, or if you’re facing a divorce that involves shared children, child custody is an important concern. While many parents think that child custody focuses solely on physical custody, this is only one element of most child custody cases. You can also have legal custody of a child, which allows you to make important decisions about how they are raised.   If you have questions or concerns regarding child custody, an experienced Yakima child custody attorney can help.

 Physical Custody

Physical custody determines the residential schedule or parenting plan that each parent has with their shared children. Some of the time, your children will be under your direct care, and some of the time, they will be under the direct care of their other parent – and this is physical custody. Regardless of what kind of physical custody is employed, both parents receive some visitation with their children – unless the court has an important reason – that usually has to do with the children’s safety – for ruling otherwise.

Types of Physical Custody

Some parents who are no longer together scrupulously divide their time with their children down the middle, and others implement complicated schedules that are more lopsided but address their families’ unique needs. Physical custody breaks down into three distinct groupings that are designed to work in a wide range of situations.

Sole Physical Custody

When one parent is the primary custodial parent while the other has limited visitation – or no visitation in extreme situations – it’s often called sole physical custody. In these situations, the children make their primary home with the parent who has the sole physical custody and see their other parent according to a set schedule. When it’s possible to do so, Washington courts award as much visitation as they consider prudent to the other parent.

Joint Physical Custody

Joint physical custody means that both parents share physical custody in the sense that neither is the primary custodial parent. Joint physical custody does not, however, mean that both parents necessarily share their time with the kids evenly. When joint physical custody is applied, each parent typically has a generous parenting time schedule, but these schedules can vary considerably.

Split Physical Custody

Split physical custody is the term that’s often used for parents who may live farther apart from one another and who, therefore, spend longer stretches of time with the children – and without them. For example, one parent may have the children throughout the school year, while the other has them during school breaks and for a longer period over the summer.

Factors Considered When Determining Physical Custody

When Washington courts make physical custody determinations, they are always guided by the best interests of the children involved. In this process, they take a range of factors into careful consideration, including the following:  

• Each parent’s preference in relation to physical custody
• The child’s preference – if they are considered old enough and mature enough to weigh in on the topic
• The nature, strength, and stability of the child’s relationship with each parent
• The degree to which each parent has been involved in raising the child to date and how well-suited each parent is to continue doing so
• The child’s physical, emotional, and developmental needs, including any special needs
• Each parent’s ability to meet these needs
• The child’s relationships with their siblings and other important adults in their lives
• Each parent’s work schedule and the kind of parenting plan this schedule supports
• Each parent’s overall physical and mental health and well-being
• Any concerning factors such as domestic abuse or child abuse, or neglect
• Any factors the court decides are relevant to the case at hand

  When it comes to physical custody, the court carefully weighs each factor, but several are of primary concern.

Child’s Age and Gender

A child’s needs evolve as they age, and as a result, Washington courts carefully weigh the age of the child when they make physical custody decisions. For example, if the child is a babe in arms and is still nursing, the court is likely to emphasize the mother’s primary role in caring for the child. Age-specific needs, however, tend to lessen as children grow older. Washington courts give no special preference to the parent or child’s gender when it comes to physical custody.

Parent’s Relationship with the Child

A primary concern when it comes to physical custody is the quality of the child’s relationship with each parent. If one parent quit their job to stay home with the kids and dedicated their time to building a warm, loving relationship while the other parent had far less interaction with the children, the court won’t ignore this fact. Additionally, if a child has a far closer relationship with one parent than with the other, it can play a role in how physical custody is resolved.

Parent’s Work Schedule and Living Arrangements

As mentioned, Washington courts are interested in addressing the needs of the children involved. As such, if one parent works exceptionally long hours, this parent’s visitation schedule will very likely be limited to when they can actually be there for the kids. Living arrangements can also play a role in how the court rules. If one parent’s living situation is less than ideal, it’s likely to limit the amount of time they receive with the children. Further, if one parent lives with someone whom the court believes poses a risk to the children, it can similarly affect their custody orders.

Legal Custody

Legal custody refers to the important matter of how you and your children’s other parent will make important parenting decisions post-divorce – or post-breakup. The kinds of parenting decisions involved include the following:  

• Decisions about health care
• Decisions about education
• Decisions about where the children make their primary home
• Decisions about extracurricular activities and travel
• Decisions about the children’s religious upbringing

 

Types of Legal Custody

Legal custody can be taken on by one parent, which is called sole legal custody, or it can be shared, which is called joint legal custody. Within the joint legal custody classification, however, there are options.

Sole Legal Custody

Sole legal custody means that one parent alone is awarded the legal right to make primary parenting decisions on behalf of their children. While the parent can obviously confer with the children’s other parent about the matter at hand, they retain sole decision-making power.

Joint Legal Custody

Joint legal custody means that both parents make the big-picture parenting decisions together. Not all joint custody arrangements, however, look alike. Consider the following options:  

• Both parents can make each decision together as a matter of consensus.
• Both parents can make each decision together, but one has the authority to break a tie when their genuine efforts to reach a mutually acceptable decision fail.
• The decisions can be divided between the parents according to category. For example, one parent may tackle religious upbringing and health care while the other takes on extracurriculars and education.

Factors Considered When Determining Legal Custody

When Washington courts make decisions about legal custody, they again turn to the involved children’s best interests. As a result, several primary factors help guide these determinations, including:  

• The degree to which each parent has participated in making these decisions leading up to this point
• Whether either parent has abandoned the child, has engaged in child neglect or abuse, or has been convicted of specific kinds of violent criminal offenses
• The degree to which each parent is invested in and capable of making these important decisions in cooperation with the other
• How close the parents are to one another, which can contribute to their ability to make timely decisions together on behalf of the children

 

The Best Interests of the Child

The overarching issue that courts consider when determining child custody arrangements are the best interests of the child. State law maintains that the best interests of the child are served by a parenting arrangement that best maintains a child’s emotional growth, health and stability, and physical care.

Parent’s Ability to Make Decisions for the Child

The court will consider whether the parent is capable of making thoughtful decisions on behalf of the children. This is generally based on how well each has done leading up to this point.

Parent’s Willingness to Co-Parent

When both parents are committed to working together as co-parents, Washington courts are inclined to award joint legal custody. If one parent, however, is intent on making things as difficult as possible, joint legal custody becomes less likely.

Third-Party Custody

Third-party custody refers to when someone has custody of a child who is not their own. What was once called non-parent custody in Washington is now referred to as minor guardianship.

Types of Third-Party Custody

Two of the primary forms of third-party custody in the State of Washington include grandparent custody and stepparent custody.

Grandparent Custody

While grandparents have no specific rights in relation to their grandchildren in the State of Washington, they can seek child custody of their grandchildren via a petition with the court. This generally applies only when the children’s parents are either absent or unfit to care for their children, which makes third-party custody in the children’s best interests.

Stepparent Custody

Stepparent custody is another common form of third-party custody in Washington. Since 2021, a stepparent can petition the court to become the legal guardian of their stepchildren – in the face of a biological parent who is absent or unfit.

Factors Considered When Determining Third-Party Custody

Washington courts do not assign custody to a third party unless there is a compelling reason for doing so, such as an absent parent or a parent who has been identified as unfit. When third-party custody is considered, however, Washington courts look at several important factors.

Child’s Relationship with the Third Party

If the child has a close and loving relationship with the third party, it supports assigning third-party custody.

Parent’s Fitness and Ability to Care for the Child

If the court is convinced that a child’s parent isn’t fit or able to provide the child with the care they need, third-party custody becomes more likely.

Child’s Best Interests

Courts always make custody decisions based on the best interests of the child and will take any relevant factor into consideration when determining what arrangement is best.

Bird’s Nest Custody

Bird’s nest custody allows children to continue living in their childhood home while their parents go back and forth according to their parenting time schedule.

How Bird’s Nest Custody Works

Bird’s nest custody puts the pressure of moving back and forth on the parents while the children stay put. As such, each parent has to secure another place to live when they’re not staying with the children in the family home.

Pros and Cons of Bird’s Nest Custody

The pros of bird’s nest custody are that the children retain the security of living in their family home and don’t have to move back and forth between their parents. The cons tend to be that it can be more costly for the parents – if they each need to secure a separate home – and can be confusing for the children.

Factors Considered When Determining Bird’s Nest Custody

The kinds of factors that tend to determine whether bird’s nest custody is a good option or not include the parents’ ability to communicate with one another, the degree to which increased stability supports the children, and the available resources.

The Ability of Parents to Communicate and Co-Parent Effectively

Generally, parents need to keep the lines of communication open in order to effectively co-parent in a bird’s nest custody situation. This is key to maintaining boundaries within the shared but separate home.

Stability and Consistency for the Child

The stability and consistency that bird’s nest custody affords younger children can be invaluable, while children who are preparing to leave the nest generally don’t have the same level of need.

Availability of Resources to Support Bird’s Nest Custody

Bird’s nest custody is only a viable option for those parents who can afford to keep the family home and can afford to secure their own separate living spaces, which can be quite costly.

Turn to an Experienced Yakima Child Custody Attorney for the Help You Need

Child custody is a complex legal matter that will guide your ongoing relationship with your children, which makes it exceptionally important. As discussed, child custody can take a range of different forms, and a seasoned Yakima child custody attorney has the experience, legal skill, and drive to protect your parental rights – in pursuit of child custody arrangements that work for you and your children. Reach out and contact or call us for more information today.