kayden's law
Kayden’s law, Act 88 of 2022, went into effect in August 2024. The law was named after a child who died at the hands of his father. The purpose of the law is to ensure the safety of the child, as much as possible.
There are several aspects of Kayden’s law:
Assessing risk:
The court must look to risk factors to determine child safety before making custody decisions.
Factors:
There are now additional factors for the court to consider in cases where there’s the possibility of abuse. Above all, best interest of the children is still the guiding principle.
Hearings: Evidentiary hearings are required when there are allegations of abuse or the possibility of a risk to the safety of the child.
Abuse: The definition of abuse has been expanded and broadened to cover additional behaviors.
In situations where there are allegations of abuse, and a determination by the court, that safeguards are necessary in order to impose a custody arrangement, supervised custody is a necessity.
Safe Supervison was created to address this need. Our supervisors are professionals who are trained to ensure the safety of children and to be able to report to the court, the parties, and attorneys how supervised visits are going in any potential concerns.