Custody

In North Dakota, custody is called “parental rights and responsibilities.” When a judge makes an order for parental rights and responsibilities, s/he will decide two basic things: “decision-making responsibility” and “residential responsibility.”

Decision-making responsibility is the responsibility to make decisions concerning the child. The term may refer to decisions on all issues or on specific issues included in the order.¹ Some types of decisions often included in this are:

• where your child goes to school;
• whether your child gets medical treatment, such as surgery; and
• what kind of religious training your child receives.

Residential responsibility means a parent’s responsibility to provide a home for the child.² If a parent has more than 50% of the residential responsibility, s/he has “primary residential responsibility”³ and that parent may be referred to as the “custodial parent.”

After a judge decides which parent has which responsibilities, it is all written down in a parenting plan.⁴

¹ N.D. Cent. Code § 14-09-00.1(1)
² N.D. Cent. Code § 14-09-00.1(7)
³ N.D. Cent. Code § 14-09-00.1(6)
⁴ N.D. Cent. Code § 14-09-00.1(3)