SSB 1124 (LSB 1688XC (5) 91)

SENATE FILE _____ 

BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY BILL BY CHAIRPERSON SCHULTZ)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the establishment or modification of legal custody of a child.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 598.41, subsection 2, Code 2025, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  f.  If the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that it is in the best interest of the child, the court may award separate rights and responsibilities of joint legal custody to each parent under paragraph “a”. If the court awards each parent separate rights and responsibilities of joint custody, both parents shall retain the right to legal access to information concerning the child under paragraph “e”.
    Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  598.41E  Custody dispute resolution.
   1.  For purposes of this section, “established custodial environment of the child” means an environment in which a child has a stable, permanent, and significant relationship with a parent or a caregiver. The environment includes the physical, emotional, and psychological conditions that support the child’s well-being and development.
   2.  The district court shall resolve custody right disputes a parent has related to the parent’s child. To initiate resolution of a dispute, the parent shall file an application with the court and serve process on the other parent. The court shall set a hearing on the matter upon receipt of the application.
   3.  The court shall conduct an evidentiary hearing to determine if the resolution to the disputed custody rights proposed by either parent will modify the established custodial environment of the child. The court shall make the determination from the child’s standpoint rather than that of either parent. If the resolution proposed by a parent will modify the established custodial environment of the child, the parent who proposed the resolution shall have the burden to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the proposed resolution is in the best interest of the child. If the proposed resolution will not modify the established custodial environment of the child, the parent who proposed the resolution shall establish by a preponderance of the evidence that the proposed resolution is in the best interest of the child.
   4.  The court shall consider all factors in section 598.41, subsection 3, when resolving a dispute under this section. If the court determines that a factor does not apply, the court shall only be required to articulate the reasons that the specific factor does not apply.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the establishment or modification of legal custody of a child.
   If the district court finds by clear and convincing evidence that it is in the best interest of the child, the bill allows the court presiding over a dissolution of marriage case to award separate rights and responsibilities of joint legal custody to each parent. If each parent is awarded separate rights and responsibilities of joint legal custody, both parents retain the right to legal access to information concerning the child.
   The bill defines “established custodial environment of the child” as an environment in which a child has a stable, permanent, and significant relationship with a parent or a caregiver. The environment includes the physical, emotional, and psychological conditions that support the child’s well-being and development.
   The bill authorizes a district court to resolve disputes related to custody rights. A parent may initiate a dispute resolution by filing an application with the court and serving process on the other parent. The court must set a hearing on the matter upon receipt of the application.
   The bill requires a court to determine whether a resolution proposed by either parent will modify the established custodial environment of the child. The court must make the determination from the child’s standpoint rather than that of the parents. If a proposed resolution will modify the established custodial environment of the child, the parent who proposed the resolution has the burden to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the resolution is in the best interest of the child. If a resolution will not modify the established custodial environment of the child, the parent who proposed the resolution must establish by a preponderance of the evidence that the proposed resolution is in the best interest of the child.
   The bill requires a court, during a custodial rights dispute resolution, to consider all factors the court is required to consider when considering custody during a dissolution of marriage proceeding. If the court determines a factor does not apply, the court only need articulate the reasons that the factor does not apply.