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EspañolStep 2: File and serve the custody petition
The legal paperwork that starts a custody case is called a petition. You may file your custody petition in the family court or a court of a different name that hears custody cases. Generally, you will file in the county where the child lives.
The exact petition you file may depend on whether or not you are married to the child’s other parent, as you can see in the chart below.
| If you and the other parent are… | Then you can usually file for custody in… |
|---|---|
| married and getting divorced | the divorce case. |
| married but not divorcing | a separate custody petition. |
| not married | a separate custody petition, but legal fatherhood (paternity) may need to be established first or during the custody case. |
Sometimes, non-parents can also file for custody or visitation rights. To find out about filing as a non-parent, go to Can a non-parent file for custody of a child? or talk to a lawyer.
The custody petition forms you need will be available at your local courthouse. Many forms are also available online. When you file for custody in Washington, you will need to submit a proposed parenting plan, which includes a schedule of when the child lives or stays with each parent (residential schedule).1
Some courts may have a court assistance officer or other staff who can help you complete the forms you need to file. However, court staff cannot advise or represent you. You may also be able to obtain self-help information from the Northwest Justice Project’s CLEAR (Coordinated Legal Education, Advice and Referral) hotline at 1-888-387-7111. It’s best to get help from a lawyer to make sure that you have all of the forms and fill them out correctly. You can use our Washington Courthouse Locations, Download Court Forms, and Finding a Lawyer pages to find your county’s court, the forms, and local lawyers.
In Washington, custody or visitation orders are part of a “parenting plan.” Depending on what’s going on with the child and the other parent, you may be able to ask for an emergency or temporary custody order when you file your petition. That may require appearing in front of the judge. However, in most cases, you will just file the petition, and then the clerk will tell you a date to return to court a few weeks or months later. If your child’s well-being is in danger, make sure to mention this on the petition and notify local authorities as needed.
If you are requesting a temporary parenting plan, you must include a proposed temporary plan in what you file with the court and serve on the other parent. You must also attach an affidavit or declaration that includes:
- the name and address of anyone the child has lived with in the past 12 months, and for how long the child lived there;
- each parent’s performance of parenting functions during the last 12 months;
- each parent’s work and child-care schedule currently and for the last 12 months; and
- any mandatory or discretionary limitation based on an abusive parent’s behavior or based on the behavior of someone the parent lives with that would require a limitation on a parent’s residential time with the child.2
The other parent can provide their own proposed parenting plan in response if they do not agree with the one you have filed.2
It may also be possible to file for a domestic violence protection order and get a temporary order about your child’s living arrangement through the protection order. A protection order can also suspend visitation under a parenting plan, if appropriate.3
After you file, the papers will need to be given to the other parent. This is called “service of process,” and there are specific rules on how to do it. You may want to ask the clerk for the instructions on how the other party must be served in your state.
1 For a copy of a “residential schedule,” see the Washington Courts website or our Washington Download Court Forms page
2 R.C.W. § 26.09.194(1)
3 R.C.W. § 7.105.310(1)
