To file for full custody in Oregon, you file a Petition for Custody and a proposed parenting plan in the circuit court of the county where your child lives, pay the $281 filing fee or request a waiver, have the other parent formally served, and then move through the required parent education class and court-connected mediation before a judge decides the case. “Full custody” in Oregon means sole legal custody — the exclusive right to make major decisions about your child’s education, healthcare, and religious upbringing. If the other parent objects to sharing that authority, the judge must pick one parent, because an Oregon court cannot order joint custody unless both parents agree to it.
Know What You’re Actually Asking For
Oregon treats two things separately that most people lump together. Legal custody is decision-making authority over major issues. Parenting time is the schedule — when the child is with each parent. One parent can hold sole legal custody while the other still has substantial, even equal, parenting time. Winning sole custody does not remove the other parent from your child’s daily life, and it does not let you dictate the parenting schedule on your own.
When you file for full custody, you are asking for exclusive decision-making power. You will still propose a parenting time schedule in the same case, and the judge evaluates each piece on its own.
Whether Oregon Can Hear Your Case
Oregon follows the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. Under ORS 109.741, Oregon has jurisdiction to make an initial custody decision if the state is the child’s “home state” — meaning the child has lived here for at least six consecutive months before you file. If the child recently moved out of state but a parent still lives in Oregon, Oregon keeps jurisdiction for six months after the child’s departure.1Oregon.gov. Oregon Revised Statutes – Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act
Biological and legal parents have automatic standing. Non-parents — grandparents, stepparents, or anyone else who has formed a parent-like bond with the child — can petition under ORS 109.119 by showing a genuine child-parent relationship exists and that the legal parent is not acting in the child’s best interest.2Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 109.119 – Rights of Person Who Establishes Emotional Ties Creating Child-Parent Relationship
The Forms You File
The core document is a Petition for Custody. It identifies both parents, the child, and the legal basis for your request. You also provide a residency history showing where the child has lived and with whom for the past five years, which lets the court confirm jurisdiction and surface any involvement by other states.
A Proposed Parenting Plan goes with the petition. This is your blueprint for daily life: the regular weekly schedule, holiday rotations, summer and vacation arrangements, and how transitions between households will happen. Because you are asking for sole legal custody, your plan should explain why exclusive decision-making authority is necessary and how you intend to handle major decisions about education, healthcare, and other significant matters.
You will also file a Certificate of Pending Child Support Proceedings, which tells the court whether any other legal action involving the child’s financial support is active.3Oregon Courts. UTCR 8.090 Certificate Regarding Pending Child Support Proceedings Forms are available through the Oregon Judicial Department website or at your local county courthouse. Accuracy matters — these documents become the factual record for everything that follows.
Where to File and What It Costs
File the completed packet with the circuit court clerk in the county where your child lives. The standard filing fee under ORS 21.135 is $281.4Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statute Chapter 21 – State Court Fees If you cannot afford it, apply for a deferral or waiver; the court grants fee relief to filers who qualify as low-income under federal poverty guidelines.5Oregon Judicial Department. Fee Deferral or Waiver Application and Declaration
Once the clerk processes your paperwork, the court issues a summons, the formal notification that a case has been opened.
Serving the Other Parent
Oregon requires formal service of process. You cannot hand the papers over yourself. Any competent person at least 18 years old, who lives in Oregon or in the state where service happens, and who is not a party to the case, can serve the documents.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure – 2025 Edition That includes a friend, a professional process server, or the county sheriff. Process server fees typically run between $30 and $95; sheriff fees vary by county.
After delivery, the server files a proof of service with the court. The other parent then has 30 days to respond. If service happens by publication rather than in person, the 30-day clock runs from the date stated in the published summons.
Parent Education and Mediation
Many Oregon counties require both parents to complete a court-approved parenting education class before a judge finalizes any custody arrangement. These classes, authorized under ORS 3.425, cover how custody disputes affect children and teach co-parenting strategies.7Oregon Judicial Department. Parent Education Fees typically range from free to about $100 depending on the county and provider. Check with your local court for approved programs.
Oregon also requires court-connected mediation under ORS 107.755 before a judge will decide custody.8Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 107.755 – Court-Ordered Mediation; Rules A neutral mediator works with both parents to try to reach a custody and parenting-time agreement. Agreements reached this way tend to hold up because both parents shaped them. If mediation does not produce an agreement, the case moves toward a contested hearing.
What the Judge Weighs
If your case ends up in front of a judge, the court gives primary consideration to the child’s best interests. ORS 107.137 sets out six factors the court must weigh:9Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 107.137 – Factors Considered in Determining Custody of Child
- The emotional ties between the child and each parent, siblings, and other family members.
- Each parent’s interest in the child and attitude toward the child.
- The desirability of continuing an existing relationship.
- Abuse by one parent against the other, which weighs heavily against the abusive parent.
- The preference for the primary caregiver, if that parent is deemed fit.
- Each parent’s willingness and ability to support the child’s close and continuing relationship with the other parent. This factor does not apply if the other parent has committed sexual assault or engaged in a pattern of abuse that makes continued contact dangerous.
No single factor automatically decides the case. If you want sole custody, prepare evidence on each one. The strongest cases usually involve documented abuse, substance-abuse problems, or a demonstrated unwillingness by the other parent to cooperate in decision-making.
One rule shapes everything else: an Oregon court cannot order joint custody unless both parents agree to it.10Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 107.169 – Joint Custody of Child; Modification If either parent refuses to share decision-making authority, the judge has to pick one parent for sole custody. The other parent’s refusal to cooperate makes sole custody more likely, not less.
Default and Contested Hearings
If the other parent never responds within 30 days, you can ask the court for a default judgment. The judge reviews your petition and proposed plan and, if everything looks reasonable and consistent with the child’s best interests, enters an order in your favor without a contested hearing. Before granting any default, the court requires an affidavit stating whether the other parent is on active military duty; under federal law, a court cannot enter a default against a servicemember without first appointing an attorney to protect their interests.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3931 – Protection of Servicemembers Against Default Judgments
When the other parent fights the petition, the case goes to trial. Both sides present evidence, call witnesses, and argue the best-interests factors. In contested cases, the court has authority under ORS 107.425 to order an independent investigation into each parent’s character, living situation, and parenting capacity, and can order psychological evaluations of either parent or the child.12Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 107.425 – Investigation of Parties in Domestic Relations Suit These evaluations carry significant weight and can add weeks and thousands of dollars to a case.
If you are claiming the other parent is abusive, bring documentation: police reports, protective orders, medical records, witness testimony. Vague accusations without evidence rarely move a judge. If your strongest argument is that you have been the primary caregiver, be ready to show the daily reality — school pickups, medical appointments, meals, homework.
The Final Custody Order
After the hearing, the judge signs a Final Judgment that makes the custody arrangement legally binding. The order specifies who holds legal custody, the parenting-time schedule, and any special provisions the court deems necessary. It is enforceable statewide. A parent who violates it can face contempt-of-court sanctions, including fines, attorney fee reimbursement, and other penalties aimed at forcing compliance.13Oregon Judicial Department. Filing for Contempt
Changing the Order Later
Custody orders can be modified. You have to show both a substantial change in circumstances since the last order and that modification serves the child’s best interests.10Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 107.169 – Joint Custody of Child; Modification Common examples include a parent relocating, a significant change in work schedule, the child’s evolving needs, or one parent’s inability to follow the existing order.
For joint custody orders, an inability or unwillingness by either parent to keep cooperating is itself a sufficient change of circumstances to justify modification. If you originally agreed to joint custody and the arrangement has broken down, the cooperation failure is enough on its own.