Salt Lake City Child
Custody Attorney
Custody is the part of a Utah divorce or paternity case that parents
remember. It decides where your children sleep, who signs the school
forms, whether you can move, and how much of their childhood you are
present for. CoilLaw has represented parents in custody cases across
Salt Lake County and the Wasatch Front for over a decade, in cases that
settle at mediation and cases that go to trial. This page explains how
Utah decides custody under the current law, Title 81 of the Utah Code,
and how we approach it.
The two kinds of custody in
Utah
Utah separates legal custody from physical custody, and a parent can
have one without the other.
Legal custody is decision-making authority: education, medical care,
and religion. Utah Code 81-9-205 creates a rebuttable presumption that
joint legal custody is in a child’s best interests. The presumption can
be overcome by evidence of domestic violence, neglect, abuse, or
circumstances that make shared decisions impractical, such as a parent
living far away or a demonstrated inability to cooperate. In practice
most Utah parents share legal custody.
Physical custody is where the child lives. Utah defines joint
physical custody as each parent having the child for at least 111
overnights a year. Below that, one parent has sole physical custody and
the other has parent-time. There is no presumption of joint physical
custody; the court orders it when the parents submit a parenting plan
and the court finds it is in the child’s best interests.
How Utah courts decide
custody
Every custody decision runs through the best-interest factors in Utah
Code 81-9-204. The court weighs, among other things:
each parent’s past conduct and demonstrated moral character; each
parent’s ability to put the child’s needs ahead of their own; each
parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other
parent; the child’s bond with each parent and the depth of that
relationship; each parent’s prior involvement in the child’s daily care;
the parents’ ability to cooperate and to protect the child from
conflict; any history of domestic violence, abuse, or neglect, including
coercive control, which Utah now defines and treats as relevant to
custody; the child’s physical, emotional, and developmental needs; the
geographic distance between the parents’ homes; and the child’s own
preference, which the court may consider and gives added weight at age
14 and older.
No single factor controls. What wins custody cases is a record: the
parent who has actually been doing the daily work, who communicates
reasonably, who follows temporary orders, and who can show it.
Parent-time schedules
When parents do not have equal time, Utah supplies default schedules.
The minimum schedule in Utah Code 81-9-302 gives the noncustodial parent
alternating weekends, a midweek overnight, alternating holidays, and up
to four weeks in the summer. The expanded schedule in 81-9-303 provides
145 overnights for a parent who has been actively involved and can
manage the added time. The equal parent-time schedule in 81-9-305 gives
one parent 182 overnights and the other 183, usually in alternating
weeks, when both parents have been engaged in the child’s life, live
close enough to each other and the school, and can run a shared
schedule. Children under five have their own age-based schedule under
81-9-304.
Parents can also write their own schedule into a parenting plan, and
Utah courts prefer agreed plans to imposed ones. Our guide to the
chances of getting 50/50 parent-time in Utah explains what the court
looks for.
Custody evaluations,
GALs, and Rule 100A
In contested cases the court may appoint a custody evaluator, a
mental health professional who interviews the parents and children and
makes recommendations, or a guardian ad litem to represent the child’s
interests. Utah changed the rules governing custody evaluations in 2026,
including who may serve and how reports are handled; our 2026 custody
evaluation guide covers the details. Utah’s Rule 100A places every
family case on one of three tracks by complexity, which sets deadlines
and keeps high-conflict cases from stalling.
Relocation
A parent who intends to move 150 miles or more from the other parent
must give at least 60 days’ written notice under Utah Code 81-9-209,
with a proposed parent-time schedule. The other parent can object, and
the court decides whether the move is in the child’s best interests and
how parent-time and travel costs will be handled. A parent with joint
physical custody who relocates must also file to modify custody. Moving
without notice is contempt.
Modifying a custody order
A Utah custody order can be changed when there has been a material
and substantial change in circumstances since the order and a
modification is in the child’s best interests. Common grounds include a
parent’s relocation, a change in a child’s needs, a parent’s new
schedule, a pattern of violated orders, or safety concerns. The process
starts with a petition to modify and, in most cases, mediation.
Temporary orders can change custody while the petition is pending if a
child is at risk.
Enforcing a custody order
When the other parent withholds the children, skips exchanges, or
ignores the parenting plan, the remedy is a motion to enforce. Utah
courts award make-up parent-time, attorney fees, and sanctions, and
repeated violations support a change of custody. Withholding a child
during the other parent’s court-ordered time can also be custodial
interference under Utah Code 76-5-303. Our articles on custodial
interference and on what to do when your ex takes the kids without
telling you walk through the steps.
Grandparent visitation
Grandparents have standing to petition for visitation under Utah Code
81-9-403, but the court presumes the parent’s decision is in the child’s
best interests. A grandparent must prove by clear and convincing
evidence either that they filled a parental caregiver role and losing
the relationship would substantially harm the child, or that both
parents are unfit. We represent parents defending these petitions and
grandparents bringing them.
Custody for unmarried
parents
Unmarried fathers have no custody rights until paternity is
established. Once it is, the same best-interest analysis applies to both
parents. Utah’s adoption rules can cut off an unmarried father’s rights
quickly if he does not act before the birth mother consents, so timing
matters; see our guide to the rights of unwed fathers in Utah.
How CoilLaw handles custody
cases
We start by finding out what you actually want the schedule to look
like and what the record already supports. From there the work is
practical: securing temporary orders that match your goal, because the
arrangement in place during the case tends to become permanent;
documenting your involvement and the other parent’s conduct; preparing
you for mediation, where most Utah custody cases resolve; and, when a
case will not settle, trying it with evidence the judge can use. We
handle custody in divorce, paternity, and modification cases throughout
Salt Lake County, Utah County, and the surrounding counties.
Frequently asked questions
Does Utah favor mothers in custody cases?
No. Utah law applies the same best-interest factors to both parents and does not presume either parent should have custody. The parent who has been the primary caregiver often has an advantage because the record supports them, not because of their gender.
What are the chances of getting 50/50 custody in
Utah?
Good, when both parents have been actively involved, live near each other and the school, have workable schedules, and can communicate without hostility. Utah does not presume equal time, but courts order it regularly when the 81-9-305 factors are met.
At what age can a child choose which parent to live with in
Utah?
There is no age at which a child decides. The court may consider a child’s preference and gives it more weight at 14 and older, but it remains one factor among many.
Can I move out of state with my kids?
Not without notice. A move of 150 miles or more requires 60 days’ written notice to the other parent and, if they object, a court decision on whether the move is in the children’s best interests.
How do I change a custody order?
File a petition to modify showing a material and substantial change in circumstances and that the change serves the child’s best interests. Most modifications go to mediation first.
What does a custody evaluation involve?
A court-appointed evaluator interviews both parents and the children, may visit each home and contact teachers and doctors, and writes a report with recommendations. The rules changed in 2026; talk to us before one is ordered.
How much does a custody case cost?
It depends on whether the case settles. Agreed parenting plans cost a fraction of contested trials. We will give you a realistic range at your consultation once we know the issues.
Do grandparents have visitation rights in Utah?
Only in narrow circumstances. The parent’s decision is presumed correct, and a grandparent must prove by clear and convincing evidence that they acted as a caregiver and the child would be substantially harmed, or that both parents are unfit.
Talk to a Utah custody
attorney
If custody is at issue in your divorce, paternity case, or
modification, call CoilLaw at 801-884-3775 or contact us online. We will
tell you what the law says about your facts and what it will take to get
the schedule you want.
