Legal custody determines which parent will make decisions concerning the child's or children's health, safety, education, and welfare.  One parent can make these decisions alone, which is known as sole legal custody, or both parents may retain the right to make these decisions, known as joint legal custody. 

Physical custody determines where the child or children reside.  Sole physical custody means the child or children live with one parent and may visit the other parent.  Joint physical custody means the child or children reside with both parents.  In the case of joint physical custody, one parent will have the child more than half of the time, that parent is the custodial parent.

Visitation can be unsupervised or supervised.  Visitation plans should be specific in order to avoid potential conflicts and eliminate confusion.  In developing a specific visitation plan, keep in mind that it can be helpful to be specific about which weeks of the month the visits will occur to make the plan more enforceable.  Supervised visitation is used when the child's or children's safety and well-being require that visits with a parent be supervised by the other parent, another adult, or a professional agency.  Unfortunately in extreme situations, no vitiation is ordered by the court.

The Fathers Resource Center supports that children have positive and equal access to both parents.  We can and will also support you through the process. 

For further assistances email or contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 916-739-0894for an appointment.