Know the Laws: Wyoming
UPDATED September 18, 2008
WomensLaw.org strongly recommends that you get in touch with a lawyer in your community for more information on custody. Go to the WY Where to Find Help page for a listing of organizations that can help.
- General Information
- Definitions
- Who can get custody or visitation?
- How the custody process works
- After a custody order is in place
General Information
back to topWhat is custody?
Custody is the legal responsibility for the care and control of your child (under 18).* The court may award custody of your child to one or both parents as part of a divorce or separation proceeding. There are 2 types of custody: legal and physical.
Legal custody is the right to make major decisions about your child. Some types of decisions included in the right of legal custody are: where your child goes to school, whether your child gets surgery and what kind of religious training your child receives.
Physical custody refers to who your child lives with on a day-to-day basis.**
*W.S. § 20-5-202(a)(ii)
**W.S. § 20-5-202(a)(xiv)
back to topIs there any difference between custody and visitation?
Custody can include the right to make decisions about your child (legal custody) and the right to have your child live with you (physical custody). A parent who does not have physical custody may be entitled to visitation. This means that even though your child lives with one parent, your child may get to spend time with the other parent. The court may order visitation with the other parent based on the best interests of the child.
You may also share legal custody of your child with the parent who has visitation. In this case, your child lives with one parent and spends time with the other parent, but both parents have the right to make important decisions about your child.
back to topWhat are some benefits of getting a custody order?
Some people decide not to get a custody order because they don't want to get the courts involved. They may have an informal agreement that works well for them or may think going to court will provoke the other parent.
A custody order can give you:
* The right to make decisions about your child (legal custody)
* The right to physical custody of your child (to have your child live with you)
If you decide not to get a custody order, then you and the other parent have equal rights to both of the above. The only way to change the equal right to make decisions about your child and to have your child live with you is by filing for custody of your child with the court.
While a custody order may help in many ways, you do NOT need a custody order to file for child support. When necessary, the court will order child support for the financial maintenance of your child.* (See “Can I get financial support for my children and myself?” below)
*W.S. § 20-2-301