Also known as: parent time · parent-times · parenting time · visitation
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A court-ordered or agreed allocation of time during which a parent exercises physical custody or visitation with a child. The allocation implements parental rights while advancing the child's best interests and may be enforced or modified under uniform acts governing custody jurisdiction and separation agreements.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Maya, a fit parent, restricted her son's contact with grandparents to supervised monthly visits after disputes over discipline. The grandparents petitioned under a broad best-interests statute and obtained unsupervised overnights. The court gave no special weight to Maya's decision and the order was vacated because the statute failed to respect the presumption that fit parents act in their child's best interests.
Randall and Jenna signed a written separation agreement that divided retirement assets, set modest maintenance, and established alternating weeks of physical custody near their government offices. Randall later sought court approval. The agreement's parent-time provisions remained subject to judicial review for the children's support and custody even though the property and maintenance terms bound the court absent unconscionability.
After divorce in State K, Melanie received primary physical custody and Albert received a specific alternating three-day weekend parent-time schedule plus flexible additional time. Melanie relocated to State L and refused the weekends. Albert petitioned in State L for temporary enforcement of the fixed schedule. The court issued a temporary order directing compliance with the out-of-state schedule while Albert sought modification in the proper forum.
After divorce, the parents disagreed over holiday parent-time and school-break schedules for their child. They had agreed to arbitrate all child-related disputes. The arbitrator treated the disagreement as a family-law dispute involving parenting time and issued an award allocating specific weeks. The award was confirmed because the uniform act expressly includes parenting time within arbitrable child-related disputes.
Randall and Jenna's separation agreement set alternating weeks of parent-time. Jenna later claimed the agreement was unconscionable because of an undervalued pension. The court examined the parties' economic circumstances and the children's best interests. Because the parent-time provisions concerned custody and visitation, they were not automatically binding and remained open to judicial adjustment even if the property terms stood.
A State K order granted Albert specific weekends plus additional parent-time as agreed through a family app. After Melanie relocated and blocked app access, the flexible provisions became unenforceable. Albert petitioned in State L. The court issued a temporary order restoring a neutral coordination method for the nonspecific provisions and set a deadline for Albert to obtain relief from the modification court.
Yes. The Due Process Clause protects a fit parent's fundamental right to direct a child's upbringing, including decisions about visitation. A statute that permits any person to obtain visitation based solely on a judge's independent best-interests determination, without according special weight to the fit parent's choice, is overbroad and violates due process.
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…stronger than the record in Michael H. v. Gerald D. , 491 U. S. 110 (1989), where the plurality found no fundamental right to visitation privileges by an adulterous father, or in Bowers v. Hardwick , 478 U. S. 186 (1986), where the Court found no fundamental right to engage in homosexual sodomy, or in a case involving the…
…of long-arm jurisdiction over an absent parent unreasonable because it would "discourage
…Cole v. Cole , 633 F. 2d 1083 (CA4 1980) (holding that the exception does not apply in tort suits stemming from custody and visitation disputes); Drewes v. Ilnicki , 863 F. 2d 469 (CA6 1988) (holding that the exception does not apply to a tort suit for intentional infliction of emotional distress); Lloyd v. Loeffler ,…
…in Louisiana state court for enforcement of the California custody decree, judgment of custody, and modification of petitioner's visitation
…visit “ ‘arranged by the parties’ ”; the modified order also allowed him to visit the home to collect the children for such “parenting time
Yes. Parties to a marriage may enter a written separation agreement that addresses support, custody, and visitation of their children. The agreement promotes amicable settlement of disputes arising from separation or dissolution.
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A court lacking modification jurisdiction may issue a temporary order enforcing a visitation schedule made by a court of another state. The temporary order preserves the status quo and gives the petitioner time to seek relief from the proper modification court.
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No. Terms providing for the support, custody, and visitation of children are excepted from the general rule that binds the court to the parties' agreement. The court must still determine that such terms serve the children's best interests.
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Yes. The act expressly defines a child-related dispute to include issues of parenting time, visitation, and physical or legal custody. Such disputes are therefore subject to arbitration when the parties have agreed to arbitrate family-law matters.
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