Discrepancies Between Custodial Awards and Custodial Practices:

Abstract

Courts specify custodial arrangements implicitly assuming that the arrangements for parental decision making and the children's day-to-day care will be followed. This paper reports on structured interviews with 63 parents which suggest that, in many instances, there are discrepancies between custody awards and custodial practices for both legal and physical custody. These departures from the custodial award were most common in families who had been granted joint legal custody with sole physical custody. Implications of these findings for families, for social policy, and for research are discussed.