In cases of disputed child custody, California family courts may step in to decide matters. Generally, one parent is given primary physical custody the other parent is granted secondary custody or visitation. Judges prefer to grant joint legal custody to parents unless there is a valid reason not to do so (abandonment, abusiveness, etc.). This allows both parents to be involved in making important decisions for the child. The laws governing relocation of custodial parents in California are more relaxed than they are in many other states. Unless the child custody order states otherwise, a parent is often allowed to move to another city or county (unless such a move can be shown to be harmful to the child). However, if a custodial parent moves simply to cut off the non-custodial parent's access and visitation, this can have serious legal consequences. In addition, there is a difference between temporary and permanent custody that can affect whether or not relocating is permissible.