At the outset it must be noted that "parental responsibility" means different things in different contexts. In the United States and parts of Canada "parental responsibility" will often refer to a kind of law that hold parents legally accountable for the actions [action] of their children. In some European countries and Australia the term refers to the responsibility parents have for the welfare for their children, as opposed to a power they have over them. In all of these countries the term is sometimes used to refer to legal custody of a child in situations of marital separation or divorce. In other instances it refers to a legal mandate that anyone biologically connected to a child holds permanent responsibility for, or has a voice in, decisions about the welfare of that child.