Silver Springs, MD Child Custody Attorney
Child custody cases can be extremely difficult. There are often very strong emotions on both sides of such cases, so proceedings can often get heated and unruly. Nothing is more important to parents than their children, and parents will fight tooth and nail to make sure that their children have the best situation to succeed in life.
Our child custody legal professionals are ready to assist you with your unique child custody situation. While the default response of the court will likely be to try and let both parents have custody of their child, a multitude of factors can make it so that the best decision for the child is to have only one parent have custody. The court will look to what is in the best interest of the child, and we will work tirelessly to make sure that the court knows how much you care about your children.
Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 to get a free review of your situation from our child custody attorneys.
Do Maryland Child Custody Laws Favor One Parent Over the Other?
Many parents may fear that child custody laws are designed to favor one parent over the other. True, in some states, mothers are favored over fathers in child custody proceedings because of a perceived “better fit” for the child. Maryland laws do not do this. Instead, the driving consideration in child custody proceedings is what is in the best interest of the child. Since each child will be different and have different needs, there is no clear-cut answer for what is in a child’s “best interest.” That being said, financial stability, safety, and education opportunities are generally seen as good indicators of what is in a child’s best interest. Discuss your situation with our attorneys to see how this applies to your particular custody situation.
Court-Ordered Custody in Maryland
There are various situations where the court will order that a child be placed in a specific type of custody. Some of these terms are straightforward and do not require much explanation, while others may not be obvious just by what a particular type of custody is called. We will walk you through the various types of child custody a court may order in your particular situation.
De Facto Custody
“De Facto” custody simply refers to the parent’s custody of the child before the court intervenes. In many cases, both parents will have de facto custody of the child prior to court intervention, although it is entirely possible for only one parent to have custody, with the case revolving around getting joint custody or switching custody between parents.
Legal Custody
Legal custody refers to the ability to decide things about the child’s future. This includes things like where the child goes to school, what activities they participate in, religious obligations, medical care that is not of an emergency nature, and more. In essence, this is the form of custody that allows a parent to make decisions about the child. One thing that is important to remember is that legal custody is separate from physical custody. A parent may be able to make legal decisions for the child without having physical control over them.
Sole Custody
Sole custody means that one parent has control over the child. There can be sole legal custody, sole physical custody, or a situation where there is joint legal custody but sole physical custody and vice versa.
Joint Custody
Joint custody is when both parents have control over the child. There are different kinds of control that parents can exert, so there are also different kinds of joint custody.
Joint Legal Custody
Joint legal custody refers to when both parents can make decisions about the child’s life. Joint legal custody does not automatically mean that there is joint physical custody, although that is often the case.
Shared Physical Custody
The term “shared physical custody” does not mean that both parents live with the child as a singular family unit. Instead, shared physical custody means that the child lives with each parent for a part of the time. For example, the child may spend one week with one parent and the next with another. There are a huge number of ways that shared physical custody can be implemented, so that is a matter to be handled by our child custody lawyers.
Split Custody
Split custody means that one parent has custody of some children while the other parent has custody of the other half of the kids. Split custody is rare because it can break up families in a way that is not beneficial to children, which goes against one of the guiding principles of child custody proceedings in Maryland.
Temporary Custody
Temporary custody is, as the name would suggest, a temporary arrangement for the child. Temporary custody is sometimes called custody “pending litigation” because this kind of custody is often set up only until custody proceedings are finished, and a more permanent solution for child custody is agreed on.
Emergency Custody
You can request the court grant emergency custody of your child if you believe that imminent harm is going to come to them without the court’s intervention. Emergency custody proceedings usually happen very quickly out of necessity, so it is important to talk to our lawyers as soon as you can if you are seeking this kind of legal remedy. Emergency custody is a type of temporary custody that only lasts as long as the threat to the minor child still exists. You will need further judicial intervention to turn emergency custody into permanent custody of your child.
Discuss Your Situation with Our Silver Springs, MD Child Custody Attorneys Today
Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s child custody attorneys can help you with your needs when you reach out to us at (410) 694-7291.