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Custody is generally the physical care and supervision of a child under 18 years of age and the legal responsibility of the child’s long-term needs. When the court issues a custody order, it will address these two parts of custody:
Physical custody is the physical care and supervision of a child. In other words, it addresses who the child will live with on a day-to-day basis and who will make decisions that come up during that time.1
Legal custody addresses which parent has the right to make long-range plans and decisions for the child’s education, religious training, discipline, non-emergency medical care and other matters of major significance to the child’s welfare.2
1 Md. Code, Fam. Law § 9.5-101; Taylor v. Taylor, 508 A.2d 964, 967 (Md. 1986)
2 The People’s Law Library of Maryland; Taylor v. Taylor, 508 A.2d 964, 967 (Md. 1986)
What are the different types of custody arrangements that can be issued?
According to the The People’s Law Library of Maryland, the following forms of custody exist in Maryland:
Sole custody is when both legal and physical custody are given to one parent. The child has only one primary residence.
Split custody is easiest to describe in a situation where there are two children and each parent obtains full physical custody over one child. Some of the considerations that may cause this type of custody arrangement are the age of the children and each child’s preference.
Joint custody is actually broken down into three categories:
- Joint legal custody is where the parents share care and control of the upbringing of the child, but the child has only one primary residence;
- In shared physical custody the child has two residences, spending at least 35% of his/her time with one other parent and the rest of the time with the other;
- Additionally, a person can make his/her own joint custody agreement that is any combination of shared physical and joint legal custody. One example of this is when there is one residence for the child and the parents rotate living there with the child.1
Note: In Maryland, judges deciding custody do not automatically give preference to either the mother or the father.2
1 See The People’s Law Library of Maryland website
2 Md. Code, Fam. Law § 5-203(d)(2)
What is visitation?
Visitation usually involves timed visits with the child that are either supervised or unsupervised. Supervised visitation is when the parent is only allowed to visit with the child in the company of another person. Supervised visitation often calls for a restriction of visitation to a particular location and time. Visitation does not give decision-making responsibility or long-term care of the child. A parent that does not have custody often has some form of visitation.1 Guidelines for visitation are often included in the official custody order issued by the judge.
1 The People’s Law Library of Maryland website; MD Law Encyclopedia, Parent and Child § 17
Should I start a court case to ask for supervised visitation?
If you are not comfortable with the abuser being alone with your child, you might be thinking about asking the judge to order that visits with your child be supervised. If you are already in court because the abuser filed for visitation or custody, you may not have much to lose by asking that the visits be supervised if you can present a valid reason for your request although this may depend on your situation.
However, if there is no current court case, please get legal advice before you start a court case to ask for supervised visits. We strongly recommend that you talk to an attorney who specializes in custody matters to find out what you would have to prove to get the visits supervised and how long supervised visits would last, based on the facts of your case.
In the majority of cases, supervised visits are only a temporary measure. Although the exact visitation order will vary by state, county, or judge, the judge might order a professional to observe the other parent on a certain amount of visits or the visits might be supervised by a relative for a certain amount of time – and if there are no obvious problems, the visits may likely become unsupervised. Oftentimes, at the end of a case, the other parent ends up with more frequent and/ or longer visits than s/he had before you went into court or even some form of custody.
In some cases, to protect your child from immediate danger by the abuser, starting a case to ask for custody and supervised visits is appropriate. To find out what may be best in your situation, please go to Maryland Finding a Lawyer to seek out legal advice.
What is mediation? Do abuse victims have to go?
Mediation is a process where both parents work with a trained mediator. The mediator is supposed to be neutral, meaning they do not take sides. Without giving legal advice, they help the parents try to agree on things like child custody and visits. The mediator can help you talk about your needs and choices. If asked, the mediator can also write down what you have agreed to.1
In certain circumstances, you may not have to go through mediation. Let the judge know if:
- you or your child were abused as defined by the law; or
- there is coercive control in your relationship.2
If the judge believes mediation is not appropriate because of the abuse or coercive control, the judge may not order you to do it.2
Note: “Coercive control” means that the abuser uses a pattern of emotional or psychological manipulation, maltreatment, threats of force, or intimidation. They try to scare or control you to make you do – or not do – things against your will.3 You can learn more about coercive control in our section on Emotional and Psychological Abuse.
1 Md. Rule §§ 9-205; 17-102(h)
2 Md. Rule §§ 9-205(b)(2); 9-205(a)(2)(A)-(B); Md. Code, Fam. Law § 4-501(b)
3 Md. Rule § 9-205(a)(2)(B)
Who pays for mediation?
The judge can decide how the costs and fees for mediation should be divided between the parents, and the judge can order the parents to pay. However, the judge may also waive payment all together, which means that no one has to pay.1
1 Md. Rule § 9-205(l)(2)
How long is mediation?
The judge can order parents to go to custody mediation for up to four hours, during one or two sessions. After that, the judge can order up to four more hours if the mediator recommends it and the judge agrees there is a good reason to do so (“good cause”). If you and the other parent both want to, you can agree to do mediation for longer.1
1 Md. Rule § 9-205(h)
How is a mediator chosen?
If a judge orders custody mediation, they will choose the mediator from an approved list. The judge can also assign the case to a mediation organization or the court’s mediation unit to pick the mediator.1
However, if you or the other parent disagrees with the selected mediator, either of you can ask to switch to a different mediator with the proper qualifications. To ask to change mediators, you would need to file a “Request to Substitute Mediator” form within 15 days after getting the mediation referral order.2
1 Md. Rule § 9-205(d)(1)
2 Md. Rule § 9-205(d)(5)
