Modification requires a substantial change in circumstances since the last order and that modification serves the child's best interests. Some states impose waiting periods before modification may be sought.
The threshold is higher than the initial determination.
Alternative Names:
Custody Modification|Change of Custody
Why it Matters?
The changed circumstances threshold exists to prevent relitigation, which means dissatisfaction with the existing arrangement or ordinary developmental changes do not support modification regardless of how the best interests analysis would come out today. Identifying a genuine material change, such as relocation, a parent's substance abuse, or the child's changed needs, is the required predicate before the merits are reached.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What does the threshold prevent?
What qualifies as a material change?
