Custody terms, translated into plain English

Custody types

• Legal custody — authority over major decisions: education, healthcare, religion. Distinct from where the child sleeps.
• Physical custody — where the child primarily lives. A parent can share legal custody without equal physical custody.
• Joint / sole custody — shared between parents vs held by one. Joint legal custody with primary physical custody to one parent is a common arrangement.
• Parenting time (visitation) — the actual schedule of time with each parent. Modern courts increasingly use "parenting time" for both parents rather than "visitation" for one.
• Custodial / noncustodial parent — the parent with primary physical custody vs the other. The label matters less than the schedule and support math attached to it.

People and roles

• Guardian ad litem (GAL) — a court-appointed investigator who reports on the child's best interests; see preparing for a GAL.
• Custody evaluator — a mental-health professional appointed for a deeper assessment, often including psychological testing.
• Mediator — a neutral who helps parents reach agreement without a ruling; see mediation preparation.
• Parenting coordinator — a professional some courts appoint after orders exist, to resolve day-to-day disputes without returning to court.

Process terms

• Best interests of the child — the standard nearly everything is decided under: stability, involvement, welfare, each parent's support of the child's relationship with the other.
• Parenting plan — the document specifying the schedule, holidays, exchanges, decision-making, and dispute process. The thing mediation usually produces.
• Ex parte — an emergency request decided before the other parent responds; reserved for genuine urgency, and misusing it backfires.
• Discovery — the formal exchange of information and documents before hearings; your records may be requested, which is one more reason they should be factual and calm.
• Contempt — the enforcement mechanism when someone violates a court order; proving it usually requires exactly the dated documentation of violations a custody journal contains.

Schedule terms

• Right of first refusal — a plan clause requiring a parent who needs childcare during their time to offer it to the other parent before a sitter. Frequently disputed, and disputes turn on dates and messages — documentable ones.
• Supervised visitation — parenting time in the presence of an approved third party, ordered when a court has safety concerns.
• Make-up time — time credited for missed parenting time. Whether it actually happens is a pattern worth logging.