You should consider hiring an attorney if you need to file for emergency custody, because the process is complex. If an emergency custody order is granted, a hearing must be scheduled so that both parties have the opportunity to be heard. Law enforcement can assist in recovering a child with an emergency custody order. The grounds for granting emergency custody include situations in which a child is at a substantial risk of bodily injury, sexual abuse, or removal from North Carolina for the purpose of avoiding the authority of the North Carolina courts. A court may consider refusal to pay child support in its analysis of the parent’s ability to act in the child’s best interests.Īn emergency custody order, sometimes referred to as an “ex parte order,” is an immediate, short-term custody order that a judge can grant under limited emergency circumstances, without hearing from the other party. Either parent can be awarded custody of a child of any age, depending on the family’s specific circumstances.ĭoes failing to pay child support affect a parent’s custody rights?Ī parent’s custody rights do not depend on payment of child support, but on the type of relationship with the parent that is in the child’s best interests. Without a custody order, the rights of non-parents are much more limited, and the parents generally have the right to custody of the child.Īt age 18, your child is legally an adult, and the courts no longer have the authority to order custody or visitation.ĭoes the law prefer one parent over the other? “Legal parents” are people officially recognized as parents on the child’s birth certificate, a court order such as a child support or adoption order, or an affidavit of parentage. What happens if there is no custody order?īoth legal parents have equal rights to the child if there is no custody order. However, schools, medical providers or other third parties may require a custody order before allowing a non-parent to make decisions for a child. Non-parents do not need a custody order to provide temporary care for a child as long as the parents agree that the child will live with or be cared for by the non-parent. Parents who are no longer together are not required to get a custody order, but may choose to do so in case they do not agree about the child’s care. Alternatively, there may be an equal split in which the child alternates between the parents on a regular basis. One parent may have primary physical custody, meaning the child lives with that parent most of the time, while the other parent has secondary physical custody, for example, every other weekend, or regularly scheduled dinner visits. There are many possibilities for joint physical custody. Joint physical custody means that the child’s time is split between the parents. Sole physical custody means that the child lives with one parent only, though the child may visit with the other parent. If the parents cannot agree, a court may have to make the decision. If parents have joint legal custody, then they must consult one another and jointly make major decisions, such as where the child will attend school or whether the child will have a major medical procedure. What do sole custody and joint custody mean?Ī parent who has sole legal custody can make major decisions about the child’s life without consulting the other parent. Both legal and physical custody can be either shared by the parents or held solely by one parent. Physical custody means the right to have the child in your physical care, either all the time or part of the time. Legal custody is the right to make major decisions about the child. What is the difference between legal and physical custody? “Visitation” is frequently used to refer to a person’s parenting time when it is relatively limited. Visitation is a secondary form of custody, which includes the right to visit with a child at times set forth in a court order, sometimes under specific conditions. Child custody includes the right to make major life decisions about a child and the right to have the child in your care.
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