By state
Custody documentation, state by state
The habits of good documentation are universal. Three things aren’t: whether you may record conversations, what your state’s courts call custody, and where your case would be heard. Pick your state for the specifics.
California
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court's family law division
Texas
Conservatorship (managing and possessory conservators) rather than custody · District Court
Florida
Parental responsibility (shared or sole) and time-sharing rather than custody and visitation · Circuit Court's family division
New York
Legal custody and physical (residential) custody · Family Court (or the Supreme Court within a divorce case)
Pennsylvania
Legal custody and physical custody · Court of Common Pleas
Illinois
Allocation of parental responsibilities (decision-making) and parenting time rather than custody and visitation · Circuit Court
Ohio
Allocation of parental rights and responsibilities · Court of Common Pleas
Georgia
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court
North Carolina
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
Michigan
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court's family division
Alabama
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court
Alaska
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court
Arizona
Legal decision-making and parenting time · Superior Court
Arkansas
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court
Colorado
Parental responsibilities: decision-making responsibility and parenting time · District Court
Connecticut
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court
Delaware
Legal custody and primary residence · Family Court
District of Columbia
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court of the District of Columbia
Hawaii
Legal custody and physical custody · Family Court
Idaho
Legal custody and physical custody · Magistrate Division of the District Court
Indiana
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit or Superior Court
Iowa
Legal custody and physical care · District Court
Kansas
Legal custody · District Court
Kentucky
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit or Family Court
Louisiana
Custody under the Civil Code · District Court
Maine
Parental rights and responsibilities · District Court
Maryland
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court
Massachusetts
Legal custody and physical custody · Probate and Family Court
Minnesota
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
Mississippi
Legal custody and physical custody · Chancery Court
Missouri
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court
Montana
A parenting plan setting residential schedule and decision-making · District Court
Nebraska
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
Nevada
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
New Hampshire
Parental rights and responsibilities: decision-making and residential responsibility · Circuit Court
New Jersey
Legal custody and physical custody · Superior Court
New Mexico
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
North Dakota
Parental rights and responsibilities: residential responsibility and decision-making responsibility · District Court
Oklahoma
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
Oregon
Legal custody · Circuit Court
Rhode Island
Legal custody and physical custody or placement · Family Court
South Carolina
Legal custody and physical custody · Family Court
South Dakota
Legal custody and physical custody · Circuit Court
Tennessee
A permanent parenting plan naming a primary residential parent and setting a residential schedule · Circuit
Utah
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
Vermont
Parental rights and responsibilities · Family Division of the Superior Court
Virginia
Legal custody and physical custody · Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court
Washington
A parenting plan with a residential schedule and decision-making · Superior Court
West Virginia
Allocation of custodial responsibility and decision-making responsibility · Family Court
Wisconsin
Legal custody and physical placement · Circuit Court
Wyoming
Legal custody and physical custody · District Court
More states are on the way. The record-keeping fundamentals for every state are in our guides.
These pages are general information reviewed in July 2026, not legal advice. Laws change; consult a family-law attorney in your state.