custody battle
Dispute over children
A custody battle is a legal dispute between parents or guardians over who will have primary care of a child, typically following divorce or separation.
The term emphasizes the adversarial nature of these proceedings: The custody battle dragged on for two years.
Custody battles may involve allegations of unfitness, competing claims about the child's best interests, and considerable emotional and financial cost to all parties.
- parental alienationManipulating child against other parent
- visitation rightsNoncustodial parent's scheduled contact
- supervised visitationGuarded contact with children
- co-parentingJoint child-rearing by separated adults
- traumaLasting psychological wound
best interests of the child · divorce decree · child support · arbitration · court order · parental rights · primary caregiver · family law · court hearing · ex-spouse · alimony · stress · psychological counseling · negotiation · emotional security · courtroom · lawyer · legal fees
- divorcedivorce court, divorce decree, divorce papers, divorce filing, divorce lawyer
- custodycustodial parent, noncustodial parent, visitation rights, non-custodial parent, supervised visitation
- family lifebirth, kinship, childbirth, pregnancy, new baby
- marriagebride, groom, wedding, husband, wife
- disputesargument, beef, bicker, clash, conflict
- family dramafamily bonds, sibling rivalry, family reunion, kinship, family secret
custody battleamicable divorce
Mutually agreed marriage termination
parenting plan · uncontested divorce · conscious uncoupling · mediation
custody battlenuclear family
Parents plus their offspring
family unity · domestic harmony · family harmony · marital bliss
custody battlemutual agreement
Consent from all parties