HB 120 (THIS IS A GOOD BUILD THAT WARRANTS SUPPORT)
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: Introduced on January 13 2022 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-13 - Read for the first time and referred to the House of Representatives committee on Judiciary
Pending: House Judiciary Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]
Text:
1 HB120 2 216096-1 3 By Representative Ball 4 RFD: Judiciary 5 First Read: 13-JAN-22 Page 0 1 216096-1:n:01/07/2022:GP/ma LSA2021-2687 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 SYNOPSIS: Under existing law a court may consider 9 certain factors when making child custody 10 determinations. 11 This bill would allow the court to consider 12 evidence of parental alienation when making child 13 custody determinations. 14 15 A BILL 16 TO BE ENTITLED 17 AN ACT 18 19 Relating to child custody; to amend Sections 30-3-2 20 and 30-3-152, Code of Alabama 1975, to allow the court to 21 consider evidence of parental alienation in child custody 22 decisions. 23 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA: 24 Section 1. Sections 30-3-2 and 30-3-152, Code of 25 Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows: 26 "§30-3-2. Page 1 1 "(a) In all cases of voluntary separation of husband 2 and wife, the circuit court has power, on the motion of either 3 party, 20 days' notice thereof being given to the other, to 4 may permit either the father or mother to have the custody and 5 control of the children and to superintend and direct their 6 education, having regard to the prudence, ability, and fitness 7 of the parents, and the age and sex of the children. When 8 considering the fitness of the parents, the court may consider 9 any evidence of a parent engaging in parental alienation. For 10 the purposes of this section, the term parental alienation 11 refers to a child's experience of being manipulated by one 12 parent to turn against the other parent. 13 "(b) Upon the hearing of the motion, witnesses may 14 be examined orally or testimony may be taken as in other civil 15 actions. While the application is pending, the court may 16 direct an injunction or make any order that the safety and 17 well-being of the wife or children may require. 18 "§30-3-152. 19 "(a) The court shall in every case consider joint 20 custody but may award any form of custody which is determined 21 to be in the best interest of the child. In determining 22 whether joint custody is in the best interest of the child, 23 the court shall consider the same factors considered in 24 awarding sole legal and physical custody and all of the 25 following factors: 26 "(1) The agreement or lack of agreement of the 27 parents on joint custody. Page 2 1 "(2) The past and present ability of the parents to 2 cooperate with each other and make decisions jointly. 3 "(3) The ability of the parents to encourage the 4 sharing of love, affection, and contact between the child and 5 the other parent. 6 "(4) Any history of or potential for child abuse, 7 spouse abuse, or kidnapping, or parental alienation, as 8 defined in Section 30-3-2. 9 "(5) The geographic proximity of the parents to each 10 other as this relates to the practical considerations of joint 11 physical custody. 12 "(b) The court may order a form of joint custody 13 without the consent of both parents, when it is in the best 14 interest of the child. 15 "(c) If both parents request joint custody, the 16 presumption is that joint custody is in the best interest of 17 the child. Joint custody shall be granted in the final order 18 of the court unless the court makes specific findings as to 19 why joint custody is not granted." 20 Section 2. This act shall become effective on the 21 first day of the third month following its passage and 22 approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law. Page 3

HR 522
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: Introduced on March 29 2021 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-10 - House Second Readers
Pending: House Juvenile Justice Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]

Text:
21 LC 122 0332 H. R. 522 - 1 - House Resolution 522 By: Representatives Cannon of the 58th and Thomas of the 39th A RESOLUTION 1 Expressing the sense of the Georgia General Assembly that child safety is the first priority 2 of custody and visitation adjudications and that state courts should improve adjudications of 3 custody where family violence is alleged; and for other purposes. 4 WHEREAS, according to the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, in the 2019 5 FY, Georgia's state-certified domestic violence programs sheltered 7,214 children and 6 state-funded sexual assault centers served 1,989 child victims of sexual assault; and 7 WHEREAS, child sexual abuse is significantly under-documented and under-addressed in 8 the legal system; and 9 WHEREAS, child abuse is a major public health issue in the United States, with the 10 estimated annual cost of child abuse and neglect (including physical, sexual, psychological, 11 and emotional abuse; failure to provide for educational, medical, or physical needs; and 12 inadequate supervision) in Georgia ranging from $2 billion to $3 billion; and 13 WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, federally 14 launched, funded, and tracked longitudinal research into ''adverse childhood experiences'' 15 (the ACEs study) has shown that ''children who experience abuse and neglect are also at 21 LC 122 0332 H. R. 522 - 2 - 16 increased risk for adverse health effects and certain chronic diseases as adults, including 17 heart disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, liver disease, obesity, high blood pressure, high 18 cholesterol, and high levels of C-reactive protein"; and 19 WHEREAS, research confirms that allegations of domestic violence, child abuse, and child 20 sexual abuse are often discounted when raised in child custody litigation; and 21 WHEREAS, according to the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project, 22 abusive parents, including those who are accused and adjudicated batterers, tend to be 23 granted sole custody or joint custody by the courts, placing children at risk; and 24 WHEREAS, scientifically unsound theories, specifically parental alienation syndrome, are 25 frequently applied to reject parents' and children's reports of abuse; and 26 WHEREAS, parental alienation syndrome has been rejected by the American Psychological 27 Association, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the National District 28 Attorneys Association, and the American Prosecutors Research Institute; and 29 WHEREAS, in cases involving allegations of family violence, courts should rely on the 30 assistance of third-party professionals only when they possess the proper experience or 31 expertise for assessing family violence and trauma and apply scientifically sound and 32 evidence-based theories; and 33 WHEREAS, Georgia lacks state-wide standards defining required expertise and experience 34 for court-affiliated or appointed fee-paid professionals in custody litigation or the required 35 contents of custody-related expert reports; and 21 LC 122 0332 H. R. 522 - 3 - 36 WHEREAS, custody litigation involving abuse allegations is sometimes prohibitively 37 expensive, resulting in parental bankruptcy as a result of court-mandated payments to 38 appointed fee-paid professionals, in addition to attorney's fees; and 39 WHEREAS, court reporters should be present to create records in all family law matters, 40 particularly in domestic violence and contested custody cases. 41 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that 42 the members of this body express that child safety is the first priority of custody and 43 visitation adjudications and that state courts should improve adjudications of custody where 44 family violence is alleged. 45 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized 46 and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the 47 public and the press.

• Senate Bill 17 (Child Custody – Cases Involving Child Abuse or Domestic Violence – Training for Judges and Child’s Counsel)

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: Introduced on January 12 2022 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-10 - Hearing 1/26 at 1:00 p.m.
Pending: Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee
Hearing: Jan 26 @ 1:00 pm Senate Judicial Proceedings Hearing
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF] 

Requiring the Maryland Judiciary, in consultation with domestic violence and child abuse organizations, to develop a training program for judges presiding over child custody cases involving child abuse or domestic violence and to review and update the training program at certain intervals; requiring the training program to include certain information; requiring the Maryland Judiciary to make information on a certain training program available on request; etc.

Judicial training program should include: “parental alienation, including: the origins of parental alienation the invalidity of parental alienation as a syndrome; and the inappropriateness of the use of parental 24 alienation in child custody cases.”

• Senate Bill 41 (Family Law - Child Custody and Visitation)

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: Introduced on January 12 2022 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-10 - Hearing 1/26 at 1:00 p.m.
Pending: Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee
Hearing: Jan 26 @ 1:00 pm Senate Judicial Proceedings Hearing
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]
Summary Requiring a court, in a custody or visitation proceeding, to deny custody or visitation rights to a certain party if the court has reasonable ground to believe that a child has been abused or neglected by the party, unless the court specifically finds that there is no likelihood of further child abuse or neglect by the party and states the reasons for the finding; authorizing the court to approve a supervised visitation arrangement under certain circumstances; etc.

Text includes: "ANY REASONABLE EFFORT TO PROTECT A CHILD OR A PARTY TO A CUSTODY OR VISITATION ORDER FROM THE OTHER PARTY MAY NOT BE CONSIDERED AN UNJUSTIFIABLE DENIAL OF OR INTERFERENCE WITH VISITATION GRANTED BY A CUSTODY OR VISITATION ORDER". No definition is provided for "reasonable effort" and therefore this could be used to counter parental alienation allegations.

• SB336

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)
Status: Introduced on January 20 2022 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-20 - First Reading Judicial Proceedings
Pending: Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]
Summary Requiring that an individual meet certain educational and experiential requirements in order to be appointed or approved by a court as a custody evaluator; requiring that, beginning October 1, 2023, an individual complete 20 hours of initial training in certain areas in order to be appointed or approved by a court as a custody evaluator; requiring that an individual receive 5 hours of ongoing education and training every 2 years in order to continue to be appointed or approved by a court as a custody evaluator; etc.
(XI) BACKGROUND AND CURRENT RESEARCH–INFORMED LITERATURE REGARDING PARENTAL ALIENATION, ITS INVALIDITY AS A SYNDROME, AND THE INAPPROPRIATENESS OF ITS USE IN CHILD CUSTODY CASES
(XIII) TOOLS THAT CAN HELP ASSESS THE CREDIBILITY OF A CHILD WITNESS AND INFORMATION ON HOW METHODS SUCH AS CHILD THERAPY AND EXPRESSIVE ARTS ARE LEGITIMATE THERAPEUTIC TOOLS TO MEASURE BOTH THE DEGREE OF TRAUMATIC IMPACT AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THERAPEUTIC AND SYSTEM INTERVENTION

• ​HB 104

This is the House version of SB 17.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: Introduced on January 12 2022 - 25% progression
Action: 2022-01-07 - Hearing 1/27 at 1:00 p.m.
Pending: House Judiciary Committee
Hearing: Jan 27 @ 1:00 pm House Judiciary Hearing
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]