Child Custody in a New Jersey Divorce: The 2026 Law, 15 Factors, the Child's Voice and Relocation

New Jersey's custody statute, N.J.S.A. 9:2-4, was rewritten by P.L.2025, c.316, "Approved January 20, 2026." It took effect the same day. Many guides still describe the old version, so this page notes what changed.

The policy: safety first

The old statute's stated policy was to assure children "frequent and continuing contact with both parents." The new one holds the children's physical and emotional protection and welfare paramount. Decisions are to be made case by case, the child's expressed preferences are to be considered, and "judicial decisions regarding custody of, and access to, children shall promote the safety of children as a threshold issue." Court-ordered therapy must now meet the evidence standard of Kayden's Law, which the statute describes as part of the federal Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022.

The kinds of custody

"In any proceeding involving the custody of a minor child, the rights of both parents shall be equal, and the court shall enter an order which may include:"

• Joint custody, legal, physical or both, with a residential arrangement (the child may live mainly with one parent or with each) and a duty to consult on major decisions about health, education and general welfare;
• Sole custody to one parent, with appropriate parenting time for the other; or
• any other arrangement the court finds in the child's best interests.

New Jersey law uses "parenting time"; you'll still hear "visitation."

Agreements come first. "The court shall order any custody arrangement which is agreed to by both parents unless it is contrary to the best interests of the child." If the parents can't agree, "the court may require each parent to submit a custody plan which the court shall consider in awarding custody." Under Rule 5:8-5, each parent files a Custody and Parenting Time/Visitation Plan within 75 days after the last responsive pleading. When custody or parenting time is genuinely in dispute, Rule 5:8-1 sends the case to mediation first, before any court investigation of the homes.

The 15 best-interest factors

The court must consider, among others:

1. the parents' ability to agree, communicate and cooperate about the child;
2. each parent's willingness to accept custody, and any history of refusing parenting time that wasn't based on substantiated abuse;
3. the child's relationship with the parents and siblings;
4. "the history of domestic violence and child abuse, if any";
5. the safety of the child and the child's siblings, and of either parent from physical abuse by the other;
6. the child's preference, when the child is of sufficient age and capacity to reason;
7. "the input and supporting documentation of a State-licensed mental health professional, if any, providing private therapy or other services to the child";
8. the child's needs;
9. the stability of the home;
10. the quality and continuity of the child's education;
11. the parents' fitness, taking into account assessments by court-appointed professionals;
12. how close the parents live to each other;
13. the extent and quality of time each spent with the child before or after separation;
14. the parents' work responsibilities; and
15. the age and number of children.

Fitness has a limit: "A parent shall not be deemed unfit unless that parent’s conduct has a substantial adverse effect on the child."

What's new in the list. Factor 4 now includes child abuse; factor 5 covers siblings; factor 7 is entirely new; and factor 11 now mentions court-appointed assessments. The old statute had 14 factors.

The child's voice

There's no age at which a child chooses. The court weighs the preference of a child "of sufficient age and capacity to reason so as to form an intelligent decision."

Two rules give the child's views more force:

• Findings. "If the court orders any custody arrangement contrary to the expressed preferences of the child, the court shall specifically place on the record the factors which justify the arrangement," and the reasons for the decision to disregard the child's preferences. This requirement is new in 2026.
• Interviews. At the custody hearing the judge may interview the child in chambers under Rule 5:8-6, on the court's own motion or a parent's request. "A stenographic or recorded record shall be made of each interview in its entirety."

Limits on court-ordered therapy

The 2026 law restricts therapy and reunification programs:

• No therapy order without "generally accepted and scientifically valid proof" that it is safe and effective, and good cause.
• "No treatment program intended to reunite a child with a party from whom that child is estranged and to whom that child resists or refuses contact shall be ordered by the court without the consent of both parties," and the child must be of sufficient age.
• Never "therapy that cuts off a child from a safe parent who is not physically or sexually abusive and with whom the child is bonded or to whom the child is attached."

In deciding whether there's good cause for therapy, a child of sufficient age who wants to speak to the court "shall be granted an audience off the record and in private chambers. The record of the conversation shall be sealed."

Domestic violence and abuse

• "The court shall not presume that a child’s reluctance to interact with a party was caused by the other party."
• "When there is evidence of a history of domestic violence or child abuse, the offending party shall not be granted increased custody for the purpose of improving the relationship between the child and such party," or to overcome the child's reluctance.
• In a domestic violence restraining order, temporary custody follows a presumption: "The court shall presume that the best interests of the child are served by an award of custody to the non-abusive parent" (N.J.S.A. 2C:25-29).
• A parent convicted of sexual assault, criminal sexual contact or endangering a child can't get custody or visitation "except upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence that it is in the best interest of the child for custody or visitation rights to be awarded" (N.J.S.A. 9:2-4.1).

Is New Jersey a 50/50 state?

No. The statute makes the parents' rights equal, not their time, and there's no presumption of joint custody or equal parenting time. A bill to create one (A2521, "Establishes presumption of joint legal and physical custody") was introduced on January 9, 2024, referred to committee and never acted on; it died when the 2024–2025 session ended. The same proposal was reintroduced on January 13, 2026 as A2963 and S2008, and both bills are still in committee.

Moving out of New Jersey

N.J.S.A. 9:2-2 covers children who "are natives of this State, or have resided five years within its limits." Such a child can't be removed from the state without the child's consent, if old enough, or "without the consent of both parents, unless the court, upon cause shown, shall otherwise order."

In Bisbing v. Bisbing (2017), the New Jersey Supreme Court replaced the older relocation test: the court decides "cause" with a best-interests analysis "in all contested relocation disputes in which the parents share legal custody," whether one parent has primary residence or time is shared equally.

Which state decides

Custody jurisdiction follows the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. The starting point is the child's home state, which "means the state in which a child lived with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding" (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-54). Meeting the one-year divorce residency rule doesn't by itself give New Jersey power over custody.

Parent education

In a divorce where custody, visitation or support of a minor child is an issue, each parent attends the Parents' Education Program and pays $25. The court can exempt a parent for good cause, and won't refer a parent to the program when a domestic violence restraining order or other no-contact order is in place.

Changing custody later

A custody or parenting-time order can be modified by motion, filed with the court that entered it. Courts look for a change in circumstances affecting the child's welfare. The Judiciary's post-judgment motion packet (CN 10483) has the forms.

Frequently asked questions

What changed in New Jersey custody law in 2026?

As of January 20, 2026, safety is a threshold issue, the factors include child abuse, siblings' safety and input from the child's therapist, judges must explain decisions that go against a child's stated preference, and court-ordered reunification therapy is restricted.

At what age can a child choose which parent to live with in New Jersey?

There's no set age. The court weighs the preference of a child old enough to reason, and must put its reasons on the record if it rules against that preference.

Does New Jersey favor mothers in custody?

No. The statute says "the rights of both parents shall be equal," and the court applies the same best-interest factors to both.

Is joint custody the same as 50/50 parenting time?

No. Joint legal custody means shared decisions. The child can still live mainly with one parent.

Can I move out of New Jersey with my child?

Not without the other parent's consent or a court order, if the child was born in New Jersey or has lived here five years. The court decides contested moves on the child's best interests.

What is a custody plan in New Jersey?

When parents can't agree, each files a Custody and Parenting Time/Visitation Plan within 75 days after the last responsive pleading, and the court considers it.

Where these sections live

• N.J.S.A. 9:2-4 — Custody, factors, therapy limits
• P.L.2025, c.316 — The 2026 custody amendments
• N.J.S.A. 9:2-2 — Removing a child from New Jersey
• Rule 5:8-5 — Custody and parenting time plans
• Rule 5:8-6 — Custody hearings and interviews
• Rule 5:8-1 — Custody mediation