What's happening
This bill requires New York courts to issue final child custody or visitation orders within six months of initial proceedings.
Why it matters
Prioritizes timely resolution for families. By requiring courts to issue final custody or visitation orders within six months, the bill aims to reduce prolonged uncertainty for children and parents, which can be emotionally stressful and destabilizing.
Limits the use of repeated temporary orders. The new timeline curbs the practice of issuing successive temporary orders, encouraging courts to reach final decisions more efficiently rather than delaying resolution.
Standardizes timelines across family law proceedings. The amendment brings consistency to various types of custody and permanency hearings, so families in similar situations can expect similar timeframes for judicial decisions, potentially reducing disparities in the process.
Could impact court resources and caseload management. Courts will need to prioritize custody cases to meet the new deadline, which may require adjustments in scheduling, staffing, and case management practices to avoid bottlenecks or rushed judgments.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Set Custody Decision Deadlines
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to children and families
- Referred to children and families
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
512
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
Introduced by Sen. PALUMBO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the domestic relations law and the family court act, in relation to orders for child custody
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subparagraph 4 of paragraph (a-1) of subdivision 1 of section 240 of the domestic relations law, as amended by chapter 295 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
(4) Notifying counsel and issuing orders. Upon consideration of decisions pursuant to article ten of the family court act, and registry reports and notifying counsel involved in the proceeding, or in the event of a self-represented party, notifying such party of the results thereof, including any court appointed attorney for children, the court may issue a temporary, successive temporary or final order of custody or visitation; provided, that a final order of custody or visitation shall be issued within six months following the preliminary conference or initial appearance on the petition.
§ 2. Paragraph 4 of subdivision (e) of section 651 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 295 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
4. Notifying counsel and issuing orders. Upon consideration of decisions pursuant to article ten of this act, and registry reports and notifying counsel involved in the proceeding, or in the event of a selfrepresented party, notifying such party of the results thereof, including any court appointed attorney for children, the court may issue a temporary, successive temporary or final order of custody or visitation; provided, that a final order of custody or visitation shall be issued within six months following the preliminary conference or initial appearance on the petition or order to show cause.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02118-01-5
§ 3. Subdivision (a) of section 1089 of the family court act, as added by section 27 of part A of chapter 3 of the laws of 2005, paragraph 1 as amended by chapter 342 of the laws of 2010, paragraph 2 as amended by chapter 605 of the laws of 2011 and paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 437 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
(a) Scheduling, commencement and completion of permanency hearings. (1) Children freed for adoption. (i) At the conclusion of the dispositional hearing at which the child was freed for adoption in a proceeding pursuant to section three hundred eighty-three-c, three hundred eightyfour or three hundred eighty-four-b of the social services law, the court shall set a date certain for the initial freed child permanency hearing and advise all parties in court of the date set, except for the respondent or respondents. The permanency hearing shall be commenced no later than thirty days after the hearing at which the child was freed and shall be completed within thirty days, unless the court determines to hold the permanency hearing immediately upon completion of the hearing at which the child was freed, provided adequate notice has been given.
(ii) At the conclusion of the hearing pursuant to section one thousand ninety-one of this act where the court has granted the motion for a former foster care youth who was discharged from foster care due to a failure to consent to continuation of placement to return to the custody of the local commissioner of social services or other officer, board or department authorized to receive children as public charges, the court shall set a date certain for a permanency hearing and advise all parties in court of the date set. The permanency hearing shall be commenced no later than thirty days after the hearing at which the former foster care youth was returned to foster care.
(iii) A final order of custody in a permanency hearing issued under this section shall be issued within six months following the initial permanency hearing.
(2) All other permanency hearings. At the conclusion of the hearing pursuant to section one thousand twenty-two, one thousand twenty-seven, one thousand fifty-two, one thousand eighty-nine, one thousand ninetyone, one thousand ninety-four or one thousand ninety-five of this act at which the child was remanded or placed and upon the court's approval of a voluntary placement instrument pursuant to section three hundred fifty-eight-a of the social services law, the court shall set a date certain for an initial permanency hearing, advise all parties in court of the date set and include the date in the order. Orders issued in subsequent court hearings prior to the permanency hearing, including, but not limited to, the order of placement issued pursuant to section one thousand fifty-five of this act, shall include the date certain for the permanency hearing. The final order in the initial permanency hearing shall be [commenced] issued no later than six months from the date [which is sixty days after] the child was removed from [his or her] their home[; provided, however, that if a sibling or half-sibling of the child has previously been removed from the home and has a permanency hearing date certain scheduled within the next eight months, the permanency hearing for each child subsequently removed from the home shall be scheduled on the same date certain that has been set for the first child removed from the home, unless such sibling or half-sibling has been removed from the home pursuant to article three or seven of this act. The permanency hearing shall be completed within thirty days of the scheduled date certain].
(3) Subsequent permanency hearings for a child who continues in outof-home placement or who is freed for adoption shall be scheduled for a date certain which shall be no later than six months from the completion of the previous permanency hearing and such subsequent permanency hearings shall be completed within thirty days of the date certain set for such hearings.
§ 4. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to proceedings commenced on and after such date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the domestic relations law and the family court act, in relation to orders for child custody
Purpose
To ensure custody/visitation determinations are made in a timely manner.
Summary of provisions
Section I. Subparagraph 4 of paragraph (a-1) of subdivision 1 of section 240 of the domestic relations law, as amended by chapter 295 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read: the court may issue a temporary, successive temporary or final order of custody or visitation; province, that a final order of custody or visitation shall be issued within six months following the preliminary conference or initial appearance of the peti- tion.
Section 2. Paragraph 4 of subdivision (e) of section 651 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 295 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read: a temporary, successive temporary or final order of custody or visitation provided, that a final order of custody or visitation shall be issued within six months following the preliminary conference or initial appearance on the petition or order to show cause.
Section 3. Subdivision (a) of section 1089 of the family court act, as added by section 27 of part A of chapter 3 of the laws of 2005, para- graph 1 as amended by chapter 342 of the laws 2010, paragraph 2 as amended by chapter 605 of the laws of 2011, paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 437 of the laws of 2006, is amened to add (iii) to read as follows: A final order of custody in a permanency hearing issued under this section shall be issued within six month following the initial permanency hearing.
Section 4. Sets forth the effective date.
Justification
This bill will help stop the permanent destruction which custody proceedings in New York inflict on innocent parties with prolonged liti- gation. A constituent, a primary caregiver mom and victim of decades of domestic violence, lost custody of her two children to her husband in 2000 and has never seen them again. Her first forensic evaluation recom- mended that she have custody of her children and some measure of protection. Instead of expeditiously determining child custody, the court's processes incentivized and enabled her spouse to prolong liti- gation while he worked to change the status quo of her status as primary caregiver. She became sick with cancer while living in low-income hous- ing.
This bill will speed up the process of custody or visitation by mandat- ing the determination to be made within 6 months following the prelimi- nary conference.
Legislative history
2024 S.8809
Fiscal implications
EFFECTIVE DATE: This bill shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to proceedings commenced on and after such date.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.