Opinion ID: 2587730
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The parental preference applies to awards of physical custody.

Text: We have previously applied the parental preference to determinations of physical custody  even where there is little dispute regarding legal custody. In J.W. v. R.J., [22] a superior court granted a father and a stepfather shared legal custody but awarded primary physical custody to the stepfather. [23] We reversed the custody award because the superior court had not found that the father was unfit to parent or that the child's welfare required primary physical custody to be awarded to the stepfather, and remanded for further proceedings to address these issues. [24] In Bass v. Bass, [25] a superior court awarded shared legal custody to a child's parents but granted temporary physical custody to the child's paternal grandparents in light of the mother's current inability to care for their child. [26] We upheld this decision because ample evidence in the record supported the superior court's conclusion that the mother was unfit, and, therefore, it was appropriate to override the parental preference. [27]