Child Custody

There are two types of custody in Georgia: Legal Custody and Physical Custody.

Georgia usually grant parents joint legal custody rights if “it’s in the best interest of the child/children.” Legal Custody gives a parents the right to be involved in decisions regarding a child’s life. Where parents may disagree on important matters such as religion, education, healthcare, or extra-curricular activities, one or the other is typically granted “tie-breaking” privileges.

There are also several forms of physical custody:

Joint or Shared Custody
Primary Physical Custody
Sole Physical Custody (rare; other parent has no physical rights and no decision-making rights either)

While the divorce is pending, the court may grant temporary primary custody rights to one parent only. This will not necessarily be the Final Order, but is sometimes granted to give the child/children stability during the divorce process. Where there is more than one child, the children will usually remain together during this time, to maintain the status-quo and ease the transition for all. Further, where volitility exists, the court may award physical custody to a third-party or close family member on a temporary basis.

In the most straight forward cases of Joint or Shared Custody the parents share equal or near-equal parenting time and joint legal custody is usually a given. Most common is the case where one parent has primary physical custody and the non-custodial parent has child visitation rights (sometimes called “secondary custody”). Rarely, sole custody is awarded to one parent only. In this case, the other parent has no involvement in the child’s life, but they are still expected to pay child support. Such is the case where one parent deems the other unfit or a danger to the child. For these isolated situations, please contact us today with your questions at 404-841-8480 or request a FREE consultation via our website.

Here at McKinley Law Group, we can help parents ensure that they get the best possible representation in their child custody case, which is often the most traumatic part of a divorce. Using our experience and expertize we help parents achieve the best possible result in the best interest of the child or children physically, legally and financially.