Child Custody

Understanding Child Custody in California

In California, child custody and visitation often become the most challenging aspect of divorce or nonmarital separation. Agreeing to a parenting plan and which parent will make decisions about the children’s welfare, education and health is pivotal in any divorce or a parentage action.

Legal custody refers to the right and responsibility to make major decisions for the child (education, health care, religion, welfare, etc.).

Physical custody refers to where the child resides and how parenting time is divided between the parents.

Each type of custody can be awarded as either:

Sole custody — one parent has the custody.

Joint custody — both parents share custody (legal, physical, or both).

Often, parenting plans combine them in different ways. For example:

Joint legal custody and primary physical custody to one parent with regular visitation for the other parent.

Joint legal custody and joint physical custody to both parents, with parents alternating time (e.g., certain weekdays or weekends), especially common when both parents remain engaged and able to provide care.

Sole legal custody and sole physical custody to pone parent with supervised visitation to the other parent. This is often a result of a domestic violence restraining order or another type of abuse pertaining to neglect of the child by a parent.

There can also be parenting plans with joint legal custody and tie-breaking authority, no visitation pending completion of substance abuse programs etc.

When parents can agree on a custody/visitation arrangement, they may submit their plan to the court (on forms such as FL-355 and FL-341) for a judge’s approval and signature. Once signed and filed, it becomes a binding court order. Parents can request court mediation to assist them in reaching an agreement on custody and visitation. If the parents cannot agree, the court will step in and decide based on the child’s best interests.

How Courts Decide Custody: The “Best Interest of the Child” Standard
When custody is contested, courts in California make decisions based on what’s called the “best interest of the child” standard. Under California Family Code — particularly Family Code § 3040 — custody should be awarded in the following order of preference (unless special circumstances): joint custody to both parents, or sole custody to one parent; if neither parent, then to another person providing a stable and wholesome environment; or to any suitable person who can care properly for the child.
When deciding custody, courts consider a variety of factors, including but not limited to:

The age, health, and developmental needs of the child.

Emotional bonds between child and each parent.

The child’s ties to home, school, and community — stability and continuity matter.

Each parent’s ability to care for the child, including ability to provide for daily needs, emotional support, and overall welfare.

Whether granting custody to one parent would allow “frequent and continuing contact” with the other parent, unless evidence shows it’s harmful.

The law explicitly prohibits courts from considering a parent’s sex, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation when deciding custody — those factors must not influence the decision.
As of 2024–2025, the courts must also consider a parent’s mental health history, if relevant, in assessing what’s in the child’s best interest. If mental illness is a factor, the court must both provide the parent with a list of local mental-health resources and explain its decision in writing or on the record.

Recent Legal Developments & Key Changes (2024–2025)
California custody law has seen important updates in recent years. Here are some of the most significant changes and clarifications as of 2025:

Broader Definition of Domestic Violence in Custody Cases — Courts now consider not only physical violence, but also emotional manipulation, coercive control, financial abuse, and other non-physical forms of domestic violence in evaluating custody and visitation.

Stronger Presumption Against Custody for Abusive Parents — If a parent has a documented history of domestic violence (or restrained under protective orders), there is a rebuttable presumption against awarding them sole or joint legal/physical custody. Courts must take extra precaution and may require supervised visits or deny unsupervised visitation.

Consideration of Firearms and Immediate Harm Risk When Granting Emergency (Ex Parte) Orders — Under new amendments (effective Jan 1, 2025) to sections of the Family Code (such as § 3064 and § 3100), courts assessing whether to grant emergency custody orders or limit visitation must consider whether a parent has illegal access to firearms or ammunition. If there’s risk of immediate harm or risk the child may be removed from California, this may justify suspending, denying, or restricting visitation.

Updated Training and Guidelines for Custody Evaluators — Evaluators and counselors involved in custody disputes (especially those involving abuse or substance-use allegations) are now required to undergo updated training in trauma-informed approaches and child development, to better protect child welfare.

These developments reflect a broader shift toward safeguarding the safety, stability, and well-being of children — especially in cases involving abuse, substance use, or other serious risks.

What Parents Should Know:
If you are a parent — or thinking about becoming one — in California and might face custody issues, here are some practical takeaways:

Try to Work Out a Parenting Plan — Courts encourage parents to agree on custody and visitation (parenting time) arrangements together. If you and the other parent can agree, you can submit the agreement on forms like FL-355 and FL-341 to the court. Once a judge signs it, it becomes a binding court order.

Be Prepared: Courts Focus on Child’s Best Interests — Not Parental Rights — The law centers on the child’s welfare, stability, emotional health, and continuity. If you want custody or visitation, it helps to show that your arrangement supports those goals (stable home, involvement in school/community, ability to care for child, consistent contact with both parents, etc.).

Have witnesses: Be involved in your child’s education and establish a good rapport with teachers and childcare providers. Be involved in your child’s extracurricular activities. Talk with coaches, instructors and other who can attest to your parenting skills and bond with your child. Pediatricians and other doctors can also be a source of information if you need to have testimony during an evidentiary hearing.

Domestic Violence or Other Risks Are Taken Very Seriously — If there is any history of abuse, neglect, substance abuse, or access to firearms, the court may deny custody or impose supervised visitation to protect the child.

Be Aware That Custody Orders Can Be Modified — If circumstances change (job, living situation, health, safety, child’s needs), you can request a modification of custody or visitation. Courts may revisit orders when presented with new evidence or changed conditions.

Use Available Resources — Self-Help Centers, Facilitators, Family Court Services — Many counties in California offer free or low-cost support for parents to draft custody agreements or for mediation/child custody recommending counseling. This is often a useful first step before or instead of going to a contested court hearing. Parents can take parenting classes, read books on coparenting, or enroll in coparenting counseling directly with the other parent.

Communication with a coparent: Focus on respectful, reasonable communication that is child-centered. Use apps like Talking Parents or Our Family Wizard and use the AI feature to check it for tone.

Why These Laws Matter & What’s Changing
The updates in 2024–2025 reflect a growing recognition by California lawmakers and courts that custody decisions must go beyond a simplistic “who gets the child” framework. Instead, courts are paying more attention to:

The psychological and emotional safety of children — not just physical safety. The inclusion of emotional, financial, or coercive abuse in domestic-violence definitions is a major shift.

The risks posed by firearms or threats of removal from the state when children are involved. The new statutory requirement to consider firearms in ex parte custody decisions reflects concern about immediate danger.

The importance of trauma-informed, developmentally aware custody evaluations — meaning the professionals Courts use must now have better training to assess what’s truly best for children.

Ensuring fairness and non-discrimination — the law explicitly prohibits bias based on a parent’s gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation when awarding custody.

For parents and families, this means custody cases may be more nuanced, but potentially more protective of children’s overall well-being.

Child custody laws in California as of 2025 continue to emphasize that the child’s best interests — health, safety, stability, emotional well-being — should guide custody and visitation orders. The law gives courts flexibility (joint or sole custody, joint or sole legal/physical custody) but also imposes careful standards when there are risks such as abuse or danger from firearms. Recent reforms signal a broader understanding of what “safety and well-being” mean for children — beyond just physical presence.
If you’re navigating custody or parenting-time issues, it’s usually wise to try to reach an agreement with the other parent first (if possible), or seek guidance from a family-law facilitator or attorney. And always document stability, care ability, involvement, and — in problematic situations — any concerns about safety or well-being.

More resources: https://www.afccnet.org/Coronavirus

OVERVIEW OF THE LAW

Under California law, the court may issue custody and visitation orders in a variety of matters including marital litigation (marriage dissolution, nullity, or legal separation), domestic partnership litigation, an action for exclusive custody, a Domestic Violence Prevention Act (DVPA) proceedings, Uniform Parentage Act matters, proceedings brought by the local child support agency, grandparent’s visitation proceedings, visitation by a former legal guardian, and dependency proceedings.

BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD LAWYER IN LONG BEACH, CA

The guiding standard is in the best interest of the child. Family Code section 3011, under which the court shall consider the following:

“(a)The health, safety, and welfare of the child.

(b) Any history of abuse by one parent or any other person seeking custody against any of the following:

(1) Any child to whom he or she is related by blood or affinity or with whom he or she has had a caretaking relationship, no matter how temporary.

(2) The other parent.

(3) A parent, current spouse, or cohabitant, of the parent or person seeking custody, or a person with whom the parent or person seeking custody has a dating or engagement relationship.

As a prerequisite to considering allegations of abuse, the court may require substantial independent corroboration, including, but not limited to, written reports by law enforcement agencies, child protective services or other social welfare agencies, courts, medical facilities, or other public agencies or private nonprofit organizations providing services to victims of sexual assault or domestic violence. As used in this subdivision, “abuse against a child†means “child abuse†as defined in Section 11165.6 of the Penal Code and abuse against any of the other persons described in paragraph (2) or (3) means “abuse†as defined in Section 6203 of this code.

(c) The nature and amount of contact with both parents, except as provided in Section 3046.

(d) The habitual or continual illegal use of controlled substances, the habitual or continual abuse of alcohol, or the habitual or continual abuse of prescribed controlled substances by either parent. Before considering these allegations, the court may first require independent corroboration, including, but not limited to, written reports from law enforcement agencies, courts, probation departments, social welfare agencies, medical facilities, rehabilitation facilities, or other public agencies or nonprofit organizations providing drug and alcohol abuse services. As used in this subdivision, “controlled substances†has the same meaning as defined in the California Uniform Controlled Substances Act, Division 10 (commencing with Section 11000) of the Health and Safety Code.

(e) (1) Where allegations about a parent pursuant to subdivision (b) or (d) have been brought to the attention of the court in the current proceeding, and the court makes an order for sole or joint custody to that parent, the court shall state its reasons in writing or on the record. In these circumstances, the court shall ensure that any order regarding custody or visitation is specific as to time, day, place, and manner of transfer of the child as set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 6323.

(2) The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply if the parties stipulate in writing or on the record regarding custody or visitation.”

CONTESTED CUSTODY

Every effort should be made to settle custody and visitation issues out of court. If you contest custody, the court will look at two main areas: child’s health, safety, and welfare AND frequent and continuing contact with both parents.

Maintaining the So-called Status Quo

Courts do not want to frustrate the custodial arrangement in existence prior to the hearing, especially for young children. So, if the children were taken care of primarily by one parent and especially if they are young, the court will want a showing of detriment to them if that arrangement was to be changed at the time of the hearing. This stems from the child’s need and right for stability and continuity. In fact, it has been determined to be the most important criteria for determining the child’s best interests. Courts do not want to cause harm to the child by disrupting the established arrangement unless it is shown that it is harmful to the child.

Willingness to Accommodate the Other Parent’s Rights

If one parent is determined to keep the children away from the other parent without a valid reason, that parent will face a hard time in court. Unless the children’s health, safety, and welfare would be jeopardized, the court must make orders ensuring frequent and continuing contact with both parents. Children thrive most when they have open access to both parents. Contesting custody should never be justified by wanting to impede the child’s relationship with the other parent, unless in cases of abuse. The court, however, is not constricted by the frequent and continuing contact policy preference and has broad discretion to determine the best custodial arrangement in light of all the circumstances.

Child’s Preferences

The court will likely want to hear from older children (teenagers) about their wishes and it may have a significant impact on custody. If a child is 14 years old or older and wants to address the court about custody or visitation, s/he must be allowed to do so unless, of court, the court determines that it would not be in that child’s best interests. If a child is younger than 14, the court must first determine that addressing the court would be appropriate pursuant to the best interest of the child’s standard. Sometimes, courts listen to children as your as 7 or 8 years old. There are many guidelines on how to determine if the child wants to address the court and how that should take place. Look for our blog for more information about that subject.

Domestic Violence Lawyer in Long Beach, CA

The law presumes that as a perpetrator of domestic violence, a parent cannot be awarded either joint or sole custody of a child. That presumption is rebuttable, which means that the perpetrator of domestic violence may show by a preponderance of the evidence that an award of custody would be in the child’s best interests; s/he completed a batterer’s program and alcohol/drug abuse counseling (if applicable); s/he completed parenting class; s/he is in compliance with the terms of probation or parole (if applicable) and in compliance of the terms of the restraining order; no other acts of domestic violence were perpetrated. However, the perpetrator cannot use the argument that the child needs “frequent and continuing” contact with her or him as a way to show that an award of custody is the child’s best interest.

FILING FOR CUSTODY/VISITATION WITH THE COURT

If you file a Request for Order (RFO) to have the court decide issues of custody and visitation, the court requires you and your spouse/domestic partner to attend mediation before the hearing. Failure to participate in mediation may prevent that parent from being heard in court on the issue of custody/visitation. In cases of domestic violence, mediation must be conducted with each parent separately, if the protected party (or party that alleges domestic violence in a declaration signed under the penalty of perjury) so requests.

If mediation is unsuccessful, the party has a right to a hearing. Contested child custody cases have priority on the court’s calendar and if it is one of the issues it may be bifurcated for a separate trial.

CUSTODY AWARDS

The court must determine child custody using the best interest of the child standard. Family Code gives the courts the widest discretion to select a parenting plan that is in the best interest of the child. It is very hard to win an appeal of a custody award because of the court’s widest discretion.

Sole Custody Orders

Sole custody (physical and legal) gives one parent primary physical control of the child with the right to make decisions over the issues of where the child will live, his/her health, education, and welfare. The noncustodial parent has visitation rights and rights to bring modification proceedings upon a showing of changed circumstances.

A parent may also be awarded sole physical custody with a joint legal custody arrangement, which means that the child resides with one parent and all parenting decisions (health, education, and welfare) are made together with the other parent.

Primary physical custody, which you see often, has no legal meaning. It is used only to signify that one parent has more physical responsibility for the child.

Sole legal custody is awarded by itself (without sole physical custody) means that the parent has decision-making rights over issues such as the child’s health, education, and welfare but not residence and supervision.

Joint Custody Orders

A joint custody award means that both parents have significant periods of physical custody of the child and that the time must be shared to ensure that the child has frequent and continuing contact with both parents (not necessarily equal time.) Joint legal custody is when both parents equally make decisions about the child’s health, education and welfare.

Under Family Code section 3040(a) custody should be granted in the order of 1) to both parents jointly or to either parent without preference of gender; 2) if to neither parent, then to the person in whose home the child has been living in a wholesome and stable environment; 3) to any other person deemed by the court to be suitable.

If a child has three parents, the court has recognized that separating a child from a parent has a “devastating psychological and emotional impact” on a child. Therefore, the court must decide how to allocate custody among the three parents.

VISITATION RIGHTS

When the court decides custody, it must also grant the other parent reasonable visitation rights unless it is shown that visitation would be detrimental to the best interest of the child. If a parent requests visits while the proceeding is ongoing, the court must make such orders. The court has to first and foremost ensure frequent and continuing contact of the child with both parents. However, if there is an issue of child abuse or domestic violence, the court has full discretion to stop visits altogether or order supervised visitation (monitored by either a professional monitor or another person approved by the court.)

The court cannot consider issues of child support payments or failure to pay support, parent’s lifestyle, sexual preference, religious beliefs unless evidence shows that these are detrimental to the child.

CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS LAWYER IN LONG BEACH, CA

Even if a child custody evaluation is merely possible in your case, you should start your preparation right away. The preparation process is not something you can do in the afternoon or on a weekend. It takes a methodical and long-term commitment to work on yourself as an individual and a parent. If you are going through a tough divorce and carrying a heavy emotional burden, you must start early in the case to unpack those heavy emotional bags. A child custody evaluation is not a place for therapy. It is not about you and your needs. Emotional work must be done by you long before you meet with the evaluator.

It is a really good idea to start individual therapy to process the hurts from your failed marriage. Some people start writing in journals to help them reflect on themselves and their mistakes. Meditation is a particularly helpful way to find yourself again and emerge from the mud of a nasty marriage and in turn nasty divorce. Meditation also helps you get connected to your breath. Remembering to breathe is essential as you go through any state of your divorce but particularly when you sit facing the evaluator. The breath will have a calming effect and open pathways to self-discovery. It is vital that you give yourself time while doing some self-improvement and letting go of work. It should start long before the evaluation starts.

So, there are some dos and don’ts of an evaluation.

DO’s

Stay focused on the needs of the child rather than your issues with your ex

2) Be open to various custody/visitation plans even though you prefer a particular one but be ready to explain why you prefer what you prefer

3) Be honest

4) Be ready to discuss the weaknesses/strengths of your ex as a parent

5) Be ready to discuss your own weaknesses/strengths as a parent

6) Be ready to discuss your relationship history without being overly angry, sad, emotional

7) Be attentive to your child during the observation period

8) Understand that your child/children need the following:

a) Your children have the right to love both parents and to have access to each parent without interference.

b) All children benefit from an absence of conflict between their parents. Children do better if parents cooperate and work together.

c) Children need to be safe, secure, and ­protected from physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.

d) Children of different ages have different needs. Two-year-old children do not need the same parenting arrangements as 12-year-old children. The custody evaluator will consider your children’s specific needs as well as their adjustment to home, school, and their social environment.

e) Children need continuity. Parenting schedules should be followed so that children can depend on and look forward to time with each parent.

f) Children do best when parents support a relationship with the other parent. Don’t ask your children to choose between you and the other parent.

9) If the evaluator gives any conclusions, stay calm

DON’Ts

1) Do not be vindictive/overly critical of your ex

2) Do not focus on your relationship issues

3) Do not expect the evaluator to solve your issues

4) Do not ask the evaluator to be your therapist

5) Do not say negative things about your ex

6) Do not try to manipulate the evaluator

7) Do not cry, shout, become angry (if strong emotions come up, breathe and are present)

8) Do not exhibit negative attitudes:

• Failing to recognize any positive qualities in the other parent
• Claiming that the other parent can do little or nothing to repair the damage
• Lack of perspective on the client’s own role in the conflict
• Perceiving no room for improvement by the other parent

9) Do not dwell on the past if the issue has been resolved (ex. do not discuss ex’s alcoholism if ex stopped drinking)

10) Do not react too emotionally if the evaluator expresses favoritism (or says something outrageous

Contact our experienced Child Custody Lawyers in Long Beach for a free consultation at (562-426-6522).