Shared physical custody is a term that’s defined by statute in Massachusetts, and the statute defines it somewhat differently than what most people understand shared physical custody to be.

Most people look at shared physical custody as a 50/50 parenting split. Those used to be looked up on with disfavor by the Massachusetts courts. We’re seeing more and more of them these days, but they all have the same four hallmarks; the hallmarks are, that the parents have the same parenting vision, that the parents get along, that the parents live geographically close to one another, and the last one is that each parent has to have a work arrangement that favors this type of thing. If someone is traveling all the time, then a 50/50 split is not gonna work.