When a parent has the right to have a child live with them, they are given physical custody. However, in cases in which the child spends significant amounts of time with both parents, it is most likely that the court will award the parents with joint physical custody. Joint physical custody usually works best when the parents live close together, and going back and forth between the homes will not cause a negative impact on the child's life.

The parent who the child primarily lives with will receive most often primary physical custody. When this is given, the other parent will receive visitation rights, and be allowed to spend time with the child and assist in parenting.;
, Legal custody gives the parent or parents the legal right to make decisions in how the child is raised. In most circumstances, when a mother and father separate or divorce, they are given joint legal custody, which is preferred by most states. With joint legal custody, both parents have a say on what religion, schooling, medical care, etc. a child will be raised with.

Although most states prefer that both parents have legal custody over a child, legal custody can be kept from one parent and given to another. Most often, this works when a parent is abusive, and the other parent can prove to the judge that there is a direct threat to the child's safety when joint legal custody is given.
 Many states do not hesitate to give sole custody to one parent, whether it's legal or physical, if the other parent shows signs of being unfit. Most often, they are deemed unfit when they have an alcohol or drug dependency or they have abused and harmed the child.

Unfortunately, if a parent is seeking sole custody, it will be more difficult to receive than it has been in the past. In recent years, the courts of many states have begun leaning away from sole custody because they'd prefer that both parents have an impact on the child's life. However, sole custody can still be awarded if the court believes one parent is an obvious danger.
 As previously mentioned, joint custody allows both parents the right to see and raise their child. It can be either physical or legal, and in most scenarios is viewed as the best option because it saves the child emotional, mental, and physical strain.

Many parents throughout the country decide on a schedule during court. Every case is different, and most are based on the work schedules of the parents. If one parent works Monday-Thursday, and another works Friday-Sunday, then joint custody will allow the child to spend time with each parent when they're off work.
The most common forms of joint custody involve certain periods of time with each parent. For instance, one parent will take care of the child during the school year, and the other will take care of the child during the summertime. Another common form of joint custody is when one parent takes care of the child on weekdays and the other on weekends.
Know that physical custody depends on where the child lives.
Use the term legal custody when it comes to legal decisions.
Assume that sole custody means that one parent has no parental rights anymore.
Use joint custody for when both parents have physical or legal rights.
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