California Custody Guide
What Do California Courts Consider in Child Custody Cases?
California custody decisions focus on the child's best interests. The court looks at the child's health and safety, family relationships, stability, each parent's ability to care for the child, family violence and regular, ongoing substance abuse, along with other relevant facts.
Quick answer
What Do California Courts Consider in Custody Cases?
- California custody decisions focus on the child's best interests.
- Relevant considerations can include age and health, emotional ties, and ties to home, school and community.
- They also include each parent's ability to care for the child, family violence and regular, ongoing substance abuse.
- Other legally relevant circumstances may matter. This is not an exhaustive checklist.
Best interest
Child Custody: The Child's Best Interest Is the Center
Best-interest factors flowing into the court's weighing and a custody and parenting-time order.
Best-interest considerations
Child's health / safety
Parent-child relationships
Stability / community
Parenting capacity
Family violence
Substance-use concerns
Other case-specific factors
Court weighs relevant information
Custody / parenting-time order
California law
The Best-Interest Framework
Family Code §3011 lists factors the court considers, including the child's health, safety and welfare, any history of abuse, the nature and amount of contact with both parents, and habitual or continual illegal drug use or alcohol abuse. California Courts explains these in plain language.
Process
Court-Connected Custody Mediation
In California, contested custody and parenting-time issues generally go to court-connected mediation before a judge decides (Family Code §3170; Rule 5.210). Local programs differ: some mediators make recommendations and some do not. This is different from private mediation.
Substance use
Substance Use in Custody Cases
Regular, ongoing substance abuse is one consideration among many. Testing, monitoring and treatment information may be relevant. None of them decides the case alone. See Alcohol Monitoring in Custody Cases, Voluntary Treatment and Custody and HS §11395 and Custody.
Limits
No Shortcut to a Custody Result
Treatment, monitoring or clean tests do not guarantee parenting time or prove fitness on their own. The family court weighs all relevant information.
Legal note
Custody and parenting time are decided by the family court. Family-law counsel handles legal strategy.
What ETS can and cannot do
Where Executive Treatment Solutions Fits
ETS can coordinate treatment, testing, monitoring and authorized documentation where substance use or behavioral health is part of a custody case. ETS does not determine custody, parenting time or legal rights.
Responsibilities
Who Does What?
Family court
Decides custody and parenting time.
Family-law counsel
Handles legal strategy.
Court mediator
Runs court-connected custody mediation.
Qualified clinician
Makes clinical recommendations.
ETS
Coordinates treatment, testing and records.
Questions
California Custody Factors: Frequently Asked Questions
Sources & Legal References
California law
Confidential consultation
Substance Use in a Custody Case?
ETS can coordinate treatment, testing and records while family-law counsel handles the case.
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