What do “Custody”, “Care and Control” and “Access” mean?
Jonathan Wong
“Custody”, “Care and Control” and “Access” Defined
Child Custody refers to a parent’s right to make critical decisions over significant aspects of the Child’s upbringing and welfare, such as those affecting the following:
Religion, e.g. whether the Child should be receiving religious instruction, attend a place of worship or participate in religious activities
Education, e.g. whether the Child should attend a particular school or enrichment class, whether the Child should participate in a specific co-curricular or extra-curricular activity
Medical or health treatment, e.g. whether the Child should receive or undergo a particular type of medical treatment
Care & Control refers to a parent’s right to have authority and responsibility for the day-to-day matters of the Child (i.e. caring for and supervising the Child daily)
The Child will reside with the parent who is awarded with Care and Control of the Child
Access refers to the periods during which the parent who doesn’t have Care and Control of the Child is given time to spend with the Child.
Access& Visitation Rights refer to a parent’s right to have contact and physical Access to the Child
This is given to the parent who doesn’t have Care and Control of the Child to make sure that that parent has sufficiently regular contact and adequate opportunities to develop and maintain an excellent parent-child relationship with the Child
For example, a parent can be given day-time Access to the Child for a certain number of days during the week and overnight Access during the weekend
