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ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 560 By: Boren of the Senate
and
Kannady of the House
An Act relating to child custody; amending 43 O.S.
2021, Section 109, which relates to awarding custody
or appointing guardian; defining term; and providing
an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 43 O.S. 2021, S ection 109, is
amended to read as foll ows:
Section 109. A. In awarding the custody of a minor unmarried
child or in appointing a general guardian for said child, the court
shall consider what appears to be in the best interests of the
physical and mental and moral welfare of the child.
B. The court, pursuant to the provisions of subsection A of
this section, may grant the care, custody, and control of a child to
either parent or to the parents jointly.
For the purposes of this section, the terms joint custody and
joint care, custody, and con trol mean the sharing by parents in all
or some of the aspects of phys ical and legal care, custody, and
control of their children.
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C. If either or both parents have requested joint custody, said
parents shall file with the court their plans for the exerci se of
joint care, custody, and control of their child. The parents of the
child may submit a plan jointly, or either parent or both parent s
may submit separate plans. Any plan shall include but is not
limited to provisions detailing the physical living a rrangements for
the child, child support obligations, medical and dent al care for
the child, school placement, and visitation rights. A pl an shall be
accompanied by an affidavit signed by each parent stating that said
parent agrees to the plan and will ab ide by its terms. The plan and
affidavit shall be filed with the peti tion for a divorce or legal
separation or after said petition is filed .
D. The court shall issue a final plan for the exercise of joint
care, custody, and control of the child or childr en, based upon the
plan submitted by the parents, separate or jointly, with appropriate
changes deemed by the court to be in the best intere sts of the
child. The court also may reject a request for joint custody and
proceed as if the request for joint cus tody had not been made.
E. The parents having joint custody of the ch ild may modify the
terms of the plan for joint care, custody, and cont rol. The
modification to the plan shall be filed with the court and included
with the plan. If the court determine s the modifications are in the
best interests of the child, the court shall approve the
modifications.
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F. The court also may modify the ter ms of the plan for joint
care, custody, and control upon the request of one parent. The
court shall not modify the plan unless the modifications are in the
best interests of the child.
G. 1. The court may terminate a joint custody decree upon the
request of one or both of the parents or whenever the court
determines said decree is not in the best interests of the chi ld.
2. Upon termination of a joint custody decree, the court shall
proceed and issue a modified decree for the care, custody, and
control of the child as if no such joint custody decree had been
made.
H. In the event of a dispute between the parents havi ng joint
custody of a child as to the interpretation of a provision of said
plan, the court may appoint an arbitrator to resolve said disput e.
The arbitrator shall be a disinterested person knowledgeable in
domestic relations law and family counseling. T he determination of
the arbitrator shall be final and binding on the p arties to the
proceedings until further order of the court.
If a parent refuses to consent to arbitration, the court may
terminate the joint custody decree.
I. 1. In every proceeding i n which there is a dispute as to
the custody of a minor child, a deter mination by the court that
domestic violence, stalking, or harassment h as occurred raises a
rebuttable presumption that sole custody, joint legal or physical
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custody, or any shared paren ting plan with the perpetrator of
domestic violence, harassing or stal king behavior is detrimental and
not in the best interest of the child, and it is in the best
interest of the child to reside with the parent who is not a
perpetrator of domestic violenc e, harassing or stalking behavior.
2. For the purposes of this subsec tion:
a. “domestic violence” means the threat of the infliction
of physical injury, any act of physical harm or the
creation of a reasonable fear thereof, or the
intentional infliction o f emotional distress by a
parent or a present or former member of the household
of the child, against the child or another member of
the household, including coercive control as defined
by subparagraph d of this paragraph by a parent
involving physical, se xual, psychological, emotional,
economic or financial abuse,
b. “stalking” means the willful course of conduct by a
parent who repeatedly follows or harasses another
person as defined in S ection 1173 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, and
c. “harassment” means a knowing and willful course or
pattern of conduct by a parent directed at another
parent which seriously alarms or is a nuisance to the
person, and which serves no legitimate purp ose
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including, but not limited to, harassing or obscene
telephone calls or conduct that would cause a
reasonable person to have a fear of death or bodily
injury, and
d. “coercive control” means unreasonably engaging in any
of the following conduct with a current or former
spouse, persons who are or were in an intimate partner
or dating relationship, or persons who are biological
parents of the same child:
(1) intentionally isolating the person from friends,
relatives, or other sources of support ,
(2) depriving the person of basic necessities,
(3) controlling, regulating, or monitoring the
person’s movements, communications, daily
behavior, finances, economic resources, or access
to services, which includes stalking or
cyberstalking,
(4) compelling the person by force, threat, or
intimidation including but not limited to threats
based on actual or susp ected immigration status,
to engage in conduct from which the person has a
right to abstain, or to abstain from conduct that
the person has a right to pursue,
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(5) committing or threatening to commit cruelty to an
animal that intimidates the person,
(6) forced sex acts or threats o f a sexual nature
including, but not limited to, threatened acts of
sexual conduct or threats to release sexual
images, or
(7) making demands on the person that limits free
will and leads to compliance.
3. If a parent is absent or relocates as a result of an act of
domestic violence by the other parent, the absence or relocation
shall not be a factor that weighs against the parent in det ermining
custody or visitation.
4. The court shall consider, as a pr imary factor, the safety
and well-being of the child and of the parent who is the victim of
domestic violence or stalking behavior, in addition to other facts
regarding the best interest of the child.
5. The court shall consider the history of the parent causing
physical harm, bodily injury, assault, verbal threats, stalkin g, or
harassing behavior, or the fear of physical harm, bodily injury, or
assault to another person, including the minor child, in determining
issues regarding custody and visitation.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
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Passed the Senate the 7th day of March, 2023.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the ____ day of __________,
2023.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives