NY, right?
Here, this is a great link for you to check out:
http://www.divorceguidelines.com/custody.html
Answers alot of your questions... for example:
"What is the real difference between full and joint custody?"
Answer: "There are two kinds of custody. Legal custody refers to decision-making power concerning the child's general upbringing, religious education, medical treatment, education, and so forth. Parents usually have shared legal custody, although in rare cases one parent may have sole legal custody. Physical custody, on the other hand, refers to the placement of the child, or where the child will live. Physical custody is usually given to one parent, but in some cases parents share joint physical custody of the child. Joint custody is usually considered to be in the best interest of the child, except in cases where one parent cannot provide a safe, healthy environment. These cases include parents who have been physically, sexually, or emotionally abusive and those who have substance-abuse problems, serious mental illness, or physical illness that prevents them from taking care of a child."
Herse a quote from
http://www.jdbar.com/nycustody.asp
"While there is no statutory distinction between physical and legal custody, understanding these concepts is the first step in understanding a custody proceeding. Physical custody refers to where the child lives. Physical custody is sometimes known as residential custody. Legal custody refers to which parent has the legal authority to make decisions involving the child. The three most significant issues involving legal custody are religious, educational and medical decisions. An order of custody is always subject to an order of visitation for the non custodial parent. In some states, the terms custody and visitation are not used, instead the term of art is “parenting time.” New York is slowly moving in that direction, however, no matter what term is used the underlying concepts remain the same."
In my opinion, the way your husband conducts his visistation and such now WILL influence a judges custody decision later. For example, if he sees the daughter only on occasion, the judge will most likely not give him 50/50 joint custody.
Remember: The court will look to see which parent was or is the primary caretaker of the child, and will often assume that parent should continue as the primary caretaker. Determining which parent is or was the primary caretaker can often be highly contested, and is fact specific for each case.
Go to the 2 sites I gave you, see if they help, okay? The second one will give you a good idea what the court will look at when deciding custody.
Hope this makes up for my mistake before. LOL
Later, Lyle
