This is the next post in my series which provides an overview of Nevada’s child custody laws for Las Vegas parents. My last article provided an overview of topics which this series will be addressing. It also stressed the need to speak with an attorney as soon as possible if you are involved in a family law dispute. It is important that you speak with counsel sooner, rather than later, as allowing your current situation to go on can result in the Court considering it to be the “status quo.” In this article I will discuss how Nevada defines custody, which is different from how some other states view the issue. If you require assistance then contact my office today to speak with a lawyer.
Nevada divides child custody into “legal” and “physical” designations
Nevada is like most states in that it divides custody along the concepts of “legal” care and “physical” care. Legal custody refers to the rights of a parent to make decisions on behalf of the child and to gain information. A parent with legal custody can do things such as obtain medical care for the child, enroll the youth in school, and other tasks which require the consent of a legal guardian. Physical custody, by contrast, refers to which parent a child is spending their time with. Joint custody, in Nevada, means that each parent will have the child at least forty percent of the time. When a parent has primary custody then they will have the child more than sixty percent of the time but their counterpart will have regular visitation. If a parent has sole physical custody then their counterpart will have limited, if any, visitation with the child. Such visitation would often be in a supervised setting.
Nevada’s custody framework differs from that of many other states. In many jurisdictions, a parent would not be considered as having joint custody unless each of the parties had the child fifty-percent of the time. This could take the form of a “one week on, one week off” arrangement. Our state, however, recognizes that a straight fifty-fifty split is not always practical in today’s society. When determining whether a parent has joint custody, the Court will look at the total number of days in the year and not the number of days in a given month or week. If a parent has the child for at least forty percent of the time over the course of the year then custody will be considered joint.
The Court will presume that Las Vegas parents should have joint custody of the child
Nevada law requires judges to begin each case with the presumption that the parents should have joint legal and physical custody of the child. This means that the Court will begin the case with this belief and if a parent wants primary custody then it is their burden to convince the Court to grant it. For the Court to grant anything other than joint legal and joint physical custody, a parent must show that doing so would be in the best interest of the child. When determining what is in the child’s best interest, the Court will consider a wide range of factors which are spelled out in Nevada’s statutes. These factors include the ability of each parent to care for the child, the child’s needs, any history of violence, and more. While the Court grants primary custody to parents on a regular basis, it should be understood that awards of sole physical custody are much more rare. Such awards are typically only made when one parent poses a threat to the child.
If you or a family member are in need of assistance then contact my office today to speak with a Las Vegas child custody lawyer. I practice solely in the area of domestic relations law and I understand that this is a serious time in your life. I pride myself on providing a high level of service and I am looking forward to speaking with you. Contact us online or by telephone to schedule an initial consultation.