Jones County, GA Child custody terms
In child custody in Jones County, GA , there are many terms that can get thrown around. Generally, it can be very easy to misinterpret what exactly these terms mean. First of all, the term like “custody” has a literal meaning. When you have custody of something, it means that it is physically in your possession. However, few parents would speak about their child as being a “possession” in the way that jewelry or a car might be a possession. Custody, as connected with child custody, is a legal term, and carries with it very specific legal meanings and underpinnings which you must be aware of what a phrase like “full child custody” means.
In Jones County, GA there are two specific areas that child custody refers to. The first area that child custody refers to is the area of legal responsibility and rights. Usually except when there is a forceful ground for a court to rule otherwise, parents will share joint legal custody of their children in a divorce. Both parents have the right and obligation to take decisions for the child in important fields like education, instruction in religion, and health care. When parents have shared or joint legal custody, both parents will have the total authority to act on the child’s behalf in these areas. If only one parent has full legal custody, then only that parent has the right to take these decisions. But, it is only in rare instances, like if one parent has been convicted of child abuse or endangerment, that there may be sole legal custody.
The next area that child custody refers to is physical custody. Having full physical custody of a child means that the child resides with you a vast majority of the time. But it does not mean that the non-custodial parent cannot see the child, or that the child cannot stay with the non-custodial parent. It simply means that the child lives with you primarily. The non-custodial parent will still generally retain joint legal custody even if you have full child custody in the physical area. In addition, the non-custodial parent can still also have specific visitation rights that you should, by law, comply with even though if you have full physical child custody.
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