What occurs if a parent, when given the choice between two custodians, does not choose one or chooses both simultaneously?
Chapter on Who is More Entitled to Child Custody
Al-Mughni
Book of Maintenance (Nafaqāt)
Primary text
If the parent fails to select one custodian or chooses both, one custodian must be selected by lot (qur'a). This is because neither custodian holds preference over the other, and joint custody is not possible. Once a custodian is selected by lot, if the parent subsequently chooses the other custodian, custody reverts to the second choice because the second choice supersedes the first, and the lot was used as a substitute for the initial preference.