What is decision-making responsibility?
Decision-making responsibility is the right to make important decisions about how to care for and raise a child. It includes the right to make decisions about a child’s education, health care, religion, and important extracurricular activities.
Decision-making responsibility used to be called custody.
Decision-making responsibility is not about who your child lives with, which is sometimes called “residence”. It is also not about how much time your child spends with each
of you.
Decision-making responsibility can be divided in a few ways after parents separate or divorce:
- One parent has all the decision-making responsibility.
- Parents share decision-making responsibility and need to agree on important decisions.
- Parents have decision-making responsibility for different things. For example, one parent may have decision-making responsibility for education and another parent for health care.
Sharing decision-making responsibility can work well if parents can communicate and work together. If your partner is abusive or controlling, they might want to share decision-making responsibility so they can use it to try and control you. You do not have to agree to this.
If you have all the decision-making responsibility for your children, your partner usually has the right to ask for, and get, information about their children’s health, education, and well-being.
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