AB 330 Provides for Legal Counsel to Low-Income Persons in Child Custody Matters  

Amends Government Code section 68651 to provide for legal counsel to low-income persons in matters involving child custody, when the parent is seeking to obtain any level of legal or physical custody. Requires that up to 20 percent of the available funds be directed to programs regarding civil matters involving an action under the Family Code, as specified. Authorizes the Judicial Council to accept donations from public or private entities for the purposes of providing grants pursuant to this section.

SB 495 Prohibits Consideration of Sex, Gender Identity, or Sexual Orientation in Child Custody Matters 

Prohibits family courts from considering the sex, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation of a parent, legal guardian, or relative in determining the best interests of the child in a custody matter. This new law builds upon and clarifies an area of law that has evolved greatly over the past several decades, including through California cases, legislation, and the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) 135 S.Ct 2584, which held that same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marry under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. (See Fam. Code §§ 3011(b), 3020(d), 3040(c).) 

AB 1380 Changes Rules Regarding the Seven-day “Clock” for Premarital Agreements

For premarital agreements executed after Jan. 1, 2020, the legislature has clarified that the seven-day waiting period required by Family Code section 1615(c) (between being first presented with the agreement and being advised to consult an attorney, and the time the agreement was signed) applies even if a party is represented by an attorney. This revision supersedes, on a prospective basis, the holding in Marriage of Cadwell-Faso & Faso (2011) 191 Cal.App.4th 945, in which the court of appeal held that strict compliance with the seven-day waiting period didn’t apply to a party who was represented by counsel from the outset of a premarital agreement transaction. The seven-day “clock” will not restart if the amendment to the agreement is nonsubstantive—for example, correcting the spelling of a party’s name. (See Fam. Code § 1615.)

Voluntary Declaration of Parentage Rules Changed: AB 2684

Since Jan. 1, 1995, hospitals have been required to provide to any unwed mother—and to attempt to provide to the man identified by the mother as the “natural” (i.e., biological) father—a voluntary declaration of parentage in order to establish legal parentage of a child. As of Jan. 1, 2020, they must do the same for a mother (whether married or unmarried) who gave birth do a child conceived through assisted reproduction. This legislation also modifies the procedures and requirements under which a voluntary declaration of parentage may be established and challenged. (See Fam. Code §§ 7570–7581.)

AB 1817 Eliminates the Use of Gendered Pronouns in the Family Code 

This family law omnibus bill eliminates the use of gendered pronouns in the Family Code, with limited exceptions.