When will the judge give joint legal custody?
The judge will order joint legal custody if s/he believes it is in your child’s best interest. The judge will assume that joint legal custody is in your child’s best interest if:
- both parents agree to it; or
- one parent asks for it and shows that s/he intends to have a meaningful relationship with the child or s/he tried to have a meaningful relationship with the child but the other parent didn’t allow it.1
The judge can grant joint legal custody to both parents while giving sole or primary physical custody to just one parent.2 If you have joint legal custody, even if your child lives with you full-time, the other parent can still have a right to make major decisions about your child’s life.3
1 N.R.S. § 125C.002(1)
2 N.R.S. § 125C.002(2)
3 See Rivero v. Rivero, 216 P.3d 213 (2009)