Understanding Child Custody Laws: A Brief Guide for Divorced Parents To make sure that your child will not suffer much from the impact of your divorce, you and your ex-spouse should understand the applicable child custody laws for custodial and non-custodial parents. You have to know the nature and your share of rights and obligations in terms of your child s upbringing. Types Of Child Custody Once a divorce proceedings start to run, the ultimate question asked by everyone is: who will get primary child custody? Together with the legal arguments and other considerations in nullifying a marriage, there are other legal questions brought to the court. One of the most important, of course, is the decision on who will get primary custody of the children. Most states allow parents to have joint legal custody of their children, so both parents can make decisions involving the child. The only problem with legal custody is that conflicts and misunderstandings may arise when the upbringing principles of parents clash. This conflict can be detrimental to their child. The person given a temporary custody of a child may decide on the child s schooling, healthcare, and welfare. Rules and guidelines involving temporary custody vary from state to state. Typically, a relative such as a grandparent or one of the parents seek temporary custody of a child. Temporary custody is granted once both parents have been informed and have been given the chance to respond to the petition. Nowadays, some lawyers argue that a mother denying the unmarried father access to the child may not be in the best interest of the child. This position would require explanation, and could be used against the mother if the custody is disputed. An unmarried father would need to first establish his paternity (either by a signed voluntary declaration, or by filing a paternity action) before he can gain rights of access and responsibilities to his child or children. Custody rights are determined based on the best interests of the children. These rights specify who will have physical and legal custody of the child. The payments for child support are also figured out in custody rights cases. The rights to the custody of a child may be given to only one parent or legal guardian or be shared by both parents.