Terms Used In South Carolina Code 63-15-548

  • Child: means :

    (a) an unemancipated individual who has not attained eighteen years of age; or

    (b) an adult son or daughter by birth or adoption or under the law of this State, other than this article, who is the subject of an existing court order concerning custodial responsibility. See South Carolina Code 63-15-502
  • Court: means an entity authorized under the law of this State, other than this article, to establish, enforce, or modify a decision regarding custodial responsibility. See South Carolina Code 63-15-502
  • Custodial responsibility: is a comprehensive term that includes any and all powers and duties relating to caretaking authority and decision-making authority for a child. See South Carolina Code 63-15-502
  • Deploying parent: means a service member, who is deployed or has been notified of impending deployment, and is:

    (a) a parent of a child under the law of this State other than this article; or

    (b) an individual other than a parent who has custodial responsibility of a child under the law of this State other than this article;

    (9) "Deployment" means the movement or mobilization of a service member to a location for more than ninety days but fewer than eighteen months pursuant to an official order that:

    (a) is designated as unaccompanied;

    (b) does not authorize dependent travel; or

    (c) otherwise does not permit the movement of family members to that location. See South Carolina Code 63-15-502
  • Parent: means biological parent, adoptive parents, step-parent, or person with legal custody. See South Carolina Code 63-1-40
  • Return from deployment: means the conclusion of a service member's deployment as specified in uniformed service orders. See South Carolina Code 63-15-502
Following return from deployment of a deploying parent until a temporary agreement or order for custodial responsibility established pursuant to Subarticle 2 or 3 is terminated, the court shall enter a temporary order granting the deploying parent reasonable contact with the child unless it is contrary to the best interest of the child, even if the time exceeds the time the deploying parent spent with the child before deployment.