How will custody and parenting time actually be decided?

Illustrative — not a real business

Courts apply what is called the best interest of the child standard, which is not a vague guideline but is typically defined by specific factors in state law — each parent's relationship with the child, each parent's ability to provide a stable environment, the child's own preference depending on age and maturity, each parent's willingness to support the child's relationship with the other parent, and any history of abuse or substance issues, among others. There is no automatic preference for the mother in modern custody law, despite this being a common and outdated assumption — courts are required to evaluate both parents under the same standard regardless of gender. It is worth distinguishing legal custody, which is the right to make major decisions about the child's education, healthcare and upbringing, from physical custody, which is about where the child actually lives day to day — these can be structured differently, such as joint legal custody with one parent having primary physical custody. As with property and support, the substantial majority of custody arrangements are actually reached through parents negotiating and agreeing to a parenting plan themselves, often with the help of mediation, rather than a judge imposing a decision after a contested hearing.