“Legal custody” and “physical custody” are the two components of custody that must be determined when children are involved in a divorce. Legal custody is the decision making aspect of raising children: some examples include when will they start school, will they be enrolled in a gifted program or IEP, what kind of non-emergency medical treatment should be done, when should braces be considered, how should the children be raised religiously. Physical custody is about the time that the children spend with each parent. Physical custody can be any arrangement that is in the best interest of the children taking into account parents’ schedules, children’s school and activity schedules, distance between each parent’s home, how old each child is and how each child copes with different environments.
