Split custody refers to a
child custody
Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the ri ...
arrangement in which one parent has
sole custody of one or more children while the other parent has sole custody of the remaining siblings. Split custody is rare, as it is thought that it is in the best to keep siblings together for mutual comfort, stability and support. Reasons for split custody can be child preferences for different parents or siblings that do not get along with each other. It is more common for older compared to younger siblings, and then usually at the request of one of the children.
Split custody is different from
shared custody, where all children live approximately equal time with each parent in a
shared parenting
Shared parenting, shared residence, joint residence, shared custody, joint physical custody, equal parenting time (EPT) is a child custody arrangement after divorce or separation, in which both parents share the responsibility of raising their ...
arrangement.
Criticism
One criticism of ''split custody'' is the same as for ''sole custody'', in that the children only have one primary parent, which has been shown to cause worse physical, mental and social outcomes versus
shared parenting
Shared parenting, shared residence, joint residence, shared custody, joint physical custody, equal parenting time (EPT) is a child custody arrangement after divorce or separation, in which both parents share the responsibility of raising their ...
.
Split custody has also been criticized for separating siblings and limiting the amount of comfort, support and stability that they can give to each other.
See also
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Alternating custody
Alternating custody can have two different meanings. It is typically used when parents take turns having sole custody of a child based on a regular schedule, while the non-custodial parent has visitation rights. For example, the father may have sol ...
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Bird's nest custody
Shared parenting, shared residence, joint residence, shared custody, joint physical custody, equal parenting time (EPT) is a child custody arrangement after divorce or separation, in which both parents share the responsibility of raising their ...
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Child custody
Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the ri ...
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Divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving th ...
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Parenting plan
A parenting plan is a child custody plan that is negotiated by parents, and which may be included in a marital separation agreement or final decree of divorce. Especially when a separation is acrimonious to begin with, specific agreements about ...
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Shared parenting
Shared parenting, shared residence, joint residence, shared custody, joint physical custody, equal parenting time (EPT) is a child custody arrangement after divorce or separation, in which both parents share the responsibility of raising their ...
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Sole custody
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Third-party custody
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The Parent Trap
References
Child custody
Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the ri ...
Juvenile law
Sibling
{{parenting-stub