Often, as a result of an ongoing divorce, it is necessary for the court to intercede to help families make decisions regarding the custody and care of the children in the family.
The court attempts to make the decision on issues of parenting time and legal decision-making by determining the best interest of each child. Legal decision-making refers to the rights of the parent to make decisions for their child concerning medical, education, and religious issues. Parenting time refers to the responsibility of a parent for where the child might be during certain times of the day, normally weeks are split up with each parent having “parenting time” certain days.
Legal Decision-Making
While a child may live with only one parent, allowing that parent to be the primary custodial parent, in most instances, the courts might rule to allow joint legal decision-making for the child. For example, if one parent lives out of state, that parent may have very little actual parenting time, but may still have joint legal decision-making with the in-state parent.
In most instances, it is common for both parents to be awarded joint legal decision-making, unless the courts feel that awarding both parents legal decision-making would not be in the best interest of the child, or would lead to unnecessary friction and fighting between the parents, to the detriment of the child.
Parenting Time
When it comes to parenting time, some of the same issues can come into play. Parents can share joint parenting time even if the child doesn’t spend exactly equal time with both parents—joint parenting time just means that the child spends significant time with each parent.
The term “visitation” has been employed for decades to describe the time that a non-custodial parent spends with a child, but it is quickly going out of fashion in favor of the term “parenting-time.” This is a reflection of the fact that many parents are offended by the term. They feel it does not accurately reflect their relationship with their child, as they are not a visitor in their child’s life but are participating in their life and the decision making process. In turn, the Arizona court system now only refers to parenting time and never visitation, as it relates to parents in family law cases.
This narrative is not intended as a comprehensive explanation of parenting time and legal decision-making in all cases and under all circumstances in Arizona. The law must be applied to the specific facts of each case. Our Judges interpret these laws and the cases interpreting these laws in fluctuating manners depending on a number of factors, giving varying weight to the different factors sighted in our statutes, rules and case precedence. If you are interested in a comprehensive consultation on your rights in the state of Arizona as they pertain to parenting time and legal decision-making, Kent Lee Law can provide you with the answers you need. Please feel free to call (623) 889-7760 to schedule an appointment and discuss your options.
