When clients ask me about physical placement of their children, each client’s situation must be considered and weighed on an individual basis. What works for one family does not necessarily work for another. It is very important to find an attorney who is familiar with not only the laws of the State of Wisconsin regarding custody and placement but also has education and background in child development and other placement strategies. I devote an entire chapter of my book, Divorce in Wisconsin, to child custody and placement and also welcome your questions by email at [email protected].
What is physical placement of a child?
Physical placement is the condition under which a party has the right to have a child physically placed with that party and has the right and responsibility to make, during that placement, routine daily decisions regarding the child’s care. Physical placement is generally defined as where the child is living on a day-to-day basis.
What are the different types of physical placement?
In most cases, each parent is awarded periods of physical placement of the children. The actual placement arrangement may take one of three basic forms:
- Primary placement–One parent has primary placement of the children. The other parent has periods of placement, which could take the form of every other weekend during the school year plus extra time in the summer. There is also usually an alternating of holidays. This is only an example and many other options can be applied.
- Shared placement–Under Wisconsin law, parents have a shared placement schedule if each parent has at least 25 percent or ninety-two days a year of physical placement with the minor children. The periods of physical placement are determined by calculating the number of overnights of each parent and dividing that number by 365. An example of a shared placement schedule is a 50/50 alternating week schedule.
- Split custody–Occasionally, and for a wide variety of reasons, children are split between the parents. With split custody, the placement schedules are usually set up to have the children together every weekend and for substantial times in the summer. There is a special split custody child-support rule that offsets and nets the child-support obligations of the parents.
Please feel free to call me at 1-800-805-1976. Vanden Heuvel & Dineen, S.C. has offices in Germantown, West Bend, Milwaukee, Appleton, Sturgeon Bay, and Sister Bay, Wisconsin, to address your divorce and custody and placement needs. Contact divorce Attorney Linda S. Vanden Heuvel at www.vhdlaw.com.
