Better than they used to be, and better than most parents assume, but not automatic. Utah does not presume that equal parent-time is in a child’s best interests, and a judge will not split the calendar down the middle simply because both parents ask. What Utah does have is a statutory equal parent-time schedule, a list of factors the court must consider before ordering it, and a bench that orders it regularly when those factors are met. Here is how the analysis works and what actually moves the odds.
What 50/50 means in Utah
Utah’s equal parent-time schedule is set out in Utah Code 81-9-305. It gives one parent 182 overnights a year and the other 183, with alternating weeks, alternating holidays, and vacation time for each parent. Parents can also design their own equal schedule in a parenting plan, such as a 2-2-5-5 or a 3-4-4-3 rotation, and the court can approve it.
Equal parent-time is a form of joint physical custody. Utah defines joint physical custody as each parent having the child for at least 111 overnights a year, so a parent can have joint physical custody without having equal time. Equal time is the top of that range.
Legal custody, meaning decision-making authority, is a separate question. Utah presumes joint legal custody under Utah Code 81-9-205 unless there is evidence of abuse, domestic violence, or other circumstances that rebut it. Parents frequently have joint legal custody with unequal physical time.
What the court has to consider
Before ordering equal parent-time, the court must find that it is in the child’s best interests and must consider the factors in 81-9-305 and the joint custody factors in 81-9-205. In plain terms, the judge is asking:
Have both parents actually been involved in the child’s daily life, not just present in the home?
Do the parents live close enough to each other, and to the child’s school, that a week-on, week-off schedule works without the child spending hours in a car?
Can each parent actually be available on their weeks, given their work schedules, and do they have reliable childcare for the gaps?
Does each home have the space and stability to be a full-time home rather than a weekend stop?
Can the parents communicate and cooperate well enough to run a shared schedule, or at least keep their conflict away from the child?
Are there health issues, for the child or a parent, that make the schedule impractical?
Is there any history of domestic violence, abuse, neglect, or substance abuse? This is the factor that most often ends the discussion.
The court also weighs the general best-interest factors in Utah Code 81-9-204, including each parent’s past conduct and moral standards, the child’s bond with each parent, and, for older children, the child’s own preference.
What improves your chances
A real track record. The parent who took the child to the doctor, knew the teachers, and handled bedtimes before the separation is far more likely to get equal time than the parent who is asking for it for the first time in a court filing. If you were not that parent before, become that parent now, during the case, and document it.
Proximity. Living within a short drive of the other parent and the child’s school is close to a prerequisite. A parent who moves across the valley, or to another county, has usually decided the question against themselves.
A workable schedule. Come to court with a specific proposal that shows how school days, activities, and exchanges will function, who covers the child after school, and how the child’s routine stays consistent. Vague requests for “more time” lose to concrete plans.
Cooperation. Every message you send to the other parent during the case may be read by the judge. A parent who is reasonable, responsive, and focused on the child in writing is demonstrating exactly what the statute asks for. A parent who is hostile is proving the opposite.
A clean record. No new incidents, no substance issues, no violations of temporary orders. Judges assume the case is the best behavior they will ever see from either parent.
Temporary orders that look like your goal. Custody arrangements that are in place during the case tend to become permanent because courts favor stability. Push for the schedule you want at the temporary orders stage, and then follow it flawlessly.
What hurts your chances
Domestic violence, including coercive control, which Utah now defines and treats as a custody factor. Substance abuse, including alcohol use that affects parenting, as we discuss in our article on losing custody for drinking. A history of being absent. Distance. A child under five, for whom Utah’s separate minimum schedule assumes shorter, more frequent contact. A demonstrated inability to co-parent, which cuts against the parent creating the conflict, not necessarily against both. And any attempt to use the child against the other parent.
When the other parent objects
An objection alone does not defeat equal time. The court can order the equal schedule over one parent’s objection if the factors support it and a parenting plan is submitted. What the objecting parent has to show is that one or more of the factors weighs against it, and what you have to show is that they do not. This is often where a custody evaluation comes in; our guide to Utah custody evaluations in 2026 explains how those work and how the rules changed.
The realistic answer
If both parents have been actively involved, live near each other, have stable homes and workable schedules, and can communicate without hostility, equal parent-time is now a common outcome in Utah, and many cases settle there. If one or more of those facts is missing, the court is more likely to order the expanded schedule under 81-9-303, which provides 145 overnights, or the minimum schedule, with room to move toward equal time later as the missing factor is addressed.
CoilLaw handles custody cases throughout Utah, including cases where equal parent-time is contested. If you want to know how your facts line up against the statute, bring them to a consultation and we will tell you plainly.
This article is general information about Utah law, not legal advice for your situation.
