How does child custody work in an Indiana divorce?

Indiana law distinguishes between two kinds of custody: legal custody, which is the authority to make major decisions about a child’s upbringing (such as education, health care, and religion), and physical custody, which concerns where the child primarily lives. Either can be held by one parent or shared. Custody decisions are governed by the best-interests-of-the-child standard under Indiana Code, and Indiana law applies no presumption favoring either parent; instead, the court weighs a range of statutory factors. The Indiana Parenting Time Guidelines, adopted by the Indiana Supreme Court, provide the framework for parenting time when parents cannot agree on their own schedule. Because these decisions are so consequential and personal, families are often far better served designing their own arrangement through mediation than leaving it to a court.