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ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESFifty-seventh Legislature First Regular Session |
House: JUD DPA 6-3-0-0 |
HB 2255: domestic relations; court appointments; fees
Sponsor: Representative Keshel, LD 17
House Engrossed
Overview
Revises qualifications under which investigators may be appointed by the court during custody proceedings, and requires the court to pay the costs of any appointment.
History
In a custody hearing (i.e. a hearing for legal decision-making authority or parenting time), the court may interview a child in chambers to ascertain his wishes concerning parenting time; in addition, the court may seek the advice of professional personnel (A.R.S. § 25-405).
In contested proceedings, the court may order an investigation into each parent’s ability to care for the child; this investigation may be performed by the court social service agency, the staff of the juvenile court, the local probation or welfare department or a private person. Parents are generally responsible for paying for these investigations, with costs allocated based on financial ability. Statute requires the investigators to complete the following training to qualify:
1) six initial hours of domestic violence training;
2) six initial hours of child abuse training; and
3) four subsequent hours of training every two years (A.R.S. § 25-406).
In Arizona law, parenting time means the schedule of time during which each parent has access to a child at specified times; legal decision-making authority means the legal right and responsibility to make all non-emergency legal decisions for a child including those regarding education, health care, religious training and personal care decisions (A.R.S. § 25-401).
Provisions
1. Restricts the court, when taking expert testimony from an expert regarding child custody, to only permitting testimony if the expert has specialized expertise in child development or substantial clinical experience with children in a therapeutic setting. (Sec. 1)
2. Restricts the court — when taking expert testimony from an expert regarding mental health, physical health, domestic violence or substance abuse — to only permitting testimony if the expert has specialized expertise or substantial clinical experience in the same matter as their testimony. (Sec. 1)
3. Requires the testimony from an expert in a custody proceeding to be supported by the canon of their profession and to adhere to the guidelines of their professional licensing board. (Sec. 1)
4. Prohibits the psychiatric evaluation of a parent in a custody proceeding unless the parent exhibits behavior that presents a high risk of harm to the child. (Sec. 1)
5. Directs that the court, not the parents, must pay the fees of the experts whose testimony is taken by the court in a custody proceeding. (Sec. 1)
6. Strikes statutory language governing evaluations in contested custody time proceedings. (Sec. 2)
7. Asserts that, in preparing an evaluation, the expert may consult any relevant person. (Sec. 2)
8. Asserts that the expert must provide the evaluation to counsel at least 10 days before the hearing. (Sec. 2)
9. Makes conforming changes. (Sec. 2)
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HB 2255
Initials NM Page 0 House Engrossed
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