Definitions

The following is definitions from the Arizona Revised Statutes that every parent should understand so they know where they stand. Especially for divorced or soon to be divorced parents. Its fairly all easy to understand but look for this red type for my input on each definition.

 

 

Title 25 Chapter 4 Article 1
25-401. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "In loco parentis" means a person who has been treated as a parent by a child and who has formed a meaningful parental relationship with a child for a substantial period of time.
(for example: a step-parent that has been a parent to the child, grandparents who have been raising the child)

2. "Joint legal decision-making" means both parents share decision-making and neither parent's rights or responsibilities are superior except with respect to specified decisions as set forth by the court or the parents in the final judgment or order.

(parents are responsible for coming to mutual agreements on things that are not previously court ordered like what doctors the child should see, what school they attend, whether or not they will participate in religious activities, child care facilities)

3. "Legal decision-making" means the legal right and responsibility to make all nonemergency legal decisions for a child including those regarding education, health care, religious training and personal care decisions. For the purposes of interpreting or applying any international treaty, federal law, a uniform code or the statutes of other jurisdictions of the United States, legal decision-making means legal custody.
(this one just defines what types of decisions fall under legal decision-making, legal decision-making does NOT give either parent the right to tell the other parent how to discipline or what type of daily schedule they keep with the child)

4. "Legal parent" means a biological or adoptive parent whose parental rights have not been terminated. Legal parent does not include a person whose paternity has not been established pursuant to section 25-812 or 25-814.
(very important for fathers of children born out of wedlock to understand. if you have not had your paternity established you have no legal rights to your child as you are NOT a legal parent. if you want to ensure you ability to be in your child's life make sure you take proper steps to establish yourself as a legal parent)

5. "Parenting time" means the schedule of time during which each parent has access to a child at specified times. Each parent during their scheduled parenting time is responsible for providing the child with food, clothing and shelter and may make routine decisions concerning the child's care.
(there has been a change in recent years as to what they term the time each LEGAL parent has with their child. in the past it was called visitation when the parent with the lesser amount of time with the child had the child. now no matter how much time each legal parent has with the child is call Parenting Time. the reason for this change was to remind parents on both sides of the coin that a parent's time with a child isn't just for them to "visit", it is the time in which the parent is a parent to their child. no matter the amount of time with your child you are responsible for doing all that is required of a parent to do while the child is with you.)

6. "Sole legal decision-making" means one parent has the legal right and responsibility to make major decisions for a child.
(in this one only one parent has the right to make the type of decisions defined in #3. it doesn't change the other parent's rights to parenting time. that will be decided by the courts in most cases. however, the parent with sole legal decision-making rights has the ability to allow the other parent with more time than the courts set forth but does not have the right to interfere with the court ordered time the other parent is entitled to. you can give more time but not take any away.)

7. "Visitation" means a schedule of time that occurs with a child by someone other than a legal parent.
(once again LEGAL parents don't "visit" their children, they parent them. that is why visitation is a term for the time when someone who isn't a legal parent has rights to see the child. sometimes this is a grandparent that hasn't been afforded any time with the child by the parents and wishes to have a relationship with the child and uses the court system to make this happen.)