SENATE, No. 4510

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

221st LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MAY 22, 2025

 

 

Sponsored by:

Senator  JOSEPH A. LAGANA

District 38 (Bergen)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Clarifies procedures in certain contested child custody cases.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  

An Actconcerning child custody, amending R.S.9:2-4, and supplementing Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1. R.S.9:2-4 is amended to read as follows:

     9:2-4. The Legislature finds and declares that it is in the public policy of this State to assure that the protection and welfare, both physically and emotionally, of minor children [of frequent and continuing contact with both parents after the parents have separated or dissolved their marriage and that it] are held paramount after the parents have separated or dissolved their marriage and that it is in the public interest to [encourage parents to share the rights and responsibilities of child rearing in order to effect this policy] ensure that decisions concerning child custody and parenting time are made on a case-by-case basis to make certain that the best interests of children are primary.

     In any proceeding involving the custody of a minor child, the rights of both parents shall be equal and the court shall enter an order which may include:

     a.     Joint custody of a minor child to both parents, which is comprised of legal custody or physical custody [which], shall include: (1) provisions for residential arrangements so that a child shall reside either solely with one parent or alternatively with each parent in accordance with the needs of the parents and the child; and (2) provisions for consultation between the parents in making major decisions regarding the child's health, education and general welfare;

     b.    Sole custody to one parent with appropriate parenting time for the noncustodial parent; or

     c.     Any other custody arrangement as the court may determine to be in the best interests of the child.

     In making an award of custody, the court shall consider, but not be limited to, the following factors: the parents' ability to agree, communicate and cooperate in matters relating to the child; the parents' willingness to accept custody and any history of unwillingness to allow parenting time not based on substantiated abuse; the interaction and relationship of the child with [its] the child's parents and siblings; the history of domestic violence, if any; the safety of the child and the safety of either parent from physical abuse by the other parent; the preference of the child when of sufficient age and capacity to reason so as to form an intelligent decision; the findings and recommendations of the licensed mental health professional, if any, providing private therapy or other services to the child; the needs of the child; the stability of the home environment offered; the quality and continuity of the child's education; the fitness of the parents; the geographical proximity of the parents' homes; the extent and quality of the time spent with the child prior to or subsequent to the separation; the parents' employment responsibilities; and the age and number of the children.  A parent shall not be deemed unfit unless the parents' conduct has a substantial adverse effect on the child.

     The court, for good cause and upon its own motion, may appoint a guardian ad litem or an attorney or both to represent the minor child's interests, which shall include but not be limited to representing the expressed preferences of the child, whether expressed by the child verbally or in writing, unless such preferences pose an imminent risk of substantial physical, financial, or other harm to the child. To the extent that the child has expressed any particular reason or reasons for the child's preferences, the guardian ad litem or the attorney or both shall so inform the court.  The court shall have the authority to award a counsel fee to the guardian ad litem and the attorney and to assess that cost between the parties to the litigation.

     d.    The court shall order any custody arrangement which is agreed to by both parents unless it is contrary to the best interests of the child.

     e.     In any case in which the parents cannot agree to a custody arrangement, the court may require each parent to submit a custody plan which the court shall consider in awarding custody.

     f.     (1) The court shall specifically place on the record the factors which justify any custody arrangement not agreed to by both parents.

     (2)   If the court orders any custody arrangement contrary to the expressed preferences of the child, the court shall specifically place on the record the factors which justify the arrangement and which justify the court's decision to disregard the child's expressed preferences.

     g. The court shall not order reunification therapy unless there is generally accepted and scientifically valid proof of the safety, effectiveness, and therapeutic value of the reunification therapy; and good cause is shown by a preponderance of the evidence that reunification therapy is appropriate.  Such evidence shall include but not be limited to evidence of consensus from mental health professionals and evidence of the child's willingness to participate in reunification therapy. 

     For the purposes of this subsection, "reunification therapy" means family therapy that aims to reunite or reestablish a relationship between an estranged parent and a child.

(cf: P.L.1997, c.299, s.9)

     2. (New section) The State Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners shall, no later than 12 months following the effective date of P.L.     , c.      (pending before the Legislature as this bill), develop professional standards for the practice of reunification therapy and, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations promulgating such standards.  In developing such standards, the Board is directed to consult with other professional licensing boards governing mental health professionals, professional organizations or learned societies with relevant expertise, and the Administrative Director of the Courts or a designee with judicial experience in child custody cases. 

     For the purposes of this section, "reunification therapy" means family therapy that aims to reunite or reestablish a relationship between an estranged parent and a child.

 

     3. This act shall take effect immediately.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill is intended to clarify procedures in certain contested child custody cases.  The bill would impose certain restrictions on the court's authority to order reunification therapy for the child, require the court to give more weight to the child's preferences in determining custody, and require the court to weigh the findings and recommendations of the child's mental health professional, if any.  The bill defines "reunification therapy" as family therapy that aims to reunite or reestablish a relationship between an estranged parent and a child.

     Under the bill, in making an award of custody, the court would be required to consider, among other factors, the findings and recommendations of any licensed mental health professional providing private therapy or other services to the child.

     The bill also prohibits the court from ordering reunification therapy unless there is generally accepted and scientifically valid proof of the safety, effectiveness, and therapeutic value of the reunification therapy, and good cause is shown by a preponderance of the evidence that reunification therapy is appropriate.  Such evidence would include but not be limited to evidence of consensus from mental health professionals and evidence of the child's willingness to participate in reunification therapy.

     Under current law, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem or an attorney, or both, to represent the minor child's interests.  The bill specifies that representing the child's interests shall include but not be limited to representing the expressed preferences of the child, whether expressed by the child verbally or in writing, unless such preferences pose an imminent risk of substantial physical, financial, or other harm to the child. The bill provides that to the extent that the child has expressed any particular reason or reasons for the child's preferences, the guardian ad litem or the attorney or both shall so inform the court.

     The bill also provides that if the court orders any custody arrangement contrary to the expressed preferences of the child, the court would be required to specifically place on the record the factors which justify the different arrangement and which justify the court's decision to disregard the child's expressed preferences.

     In addition, the bill requires the State Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners to develop professional standards for the practice of reunification therapy, and adopt rules and regulations promulgating such standards.

     Finally, the bill modifies language in the portion of the custody statute that sets out legislative findings and declarations.  The new language provides that the protection and welfare, both physically and emotionally, of minor children are held paramount after the parents have separated or dissolved their marriage and that it is in the public interest to ensure that decisions concerning custody and visitation are made on a case-by-case basis to make certain that the best intersts of children are primary.