It is the legal right of a parent to decide where a child lives, how much time a child spends with different caretakers and who has the legal right to make decisions about the child's needs. 4 Courts have much discretion in determining a custody arrangement. The type of custody arrangement can vary. However, the most common forms are where either one parent has both physical and legal custody of the child or where both parents share legal custody of the child, but one parent has physical custody. Under that standard, courts look at a number of factors in determining what type of custody arrangement would best suit the child's physical, intellectual, moral and spiritual needs.
Most states have separate statutes governing child custody and domestic violence.
Although many states require the court to consider domestic violence in making temporary or final custody determinations, others do not. Moreover, a number of state custody statutes make no mention of domestic violence as a factor to be considered in making custody awards. Indeed, for the battered woman, the custody and visitation processes often become a means by which a batterer furthers his abuse through attempts to continue to maintain control. Most forms of shared custody and visitation involve some type of proximity or contact between the battered woman and her abuser during the exchange of the child between parents. During these exchanges battered women are often subjected to verbal and physical harassment, stalking, assault, and threats, including the threat of child kidnapping.