What Kayden’s Law Actually Does
Kayden’s Law is a Pennsylvania statute, Act 107 of 2024, signed in April 2024 and effective August 15, 2024. It amends the state’s core custody factors under 23 Pa.C.S. § 5328 to require courts to give substantial, weighted consideration to factors that affect a child’s safety, rather than treating safety as just one factor among many.
The law also expanded the list of criminal offenses courts must weigh in a custody case, adding offenses like simple assault, reckless endangerment, and animal cruelty to the list judges already had to consider, such as more serious violent crimes.
The New Criminal Record and Abuse Verification Form
Every parent who files a custody case in Pennsylvania is now required to complete a criminal record and abuse verification form. This form requires disclosure of who lives in the home, past addresses, and whether anyone in the household has been charged with or convicted of offenses on the list the law identifies as relevant to abuse risk. It is not every crime, a speeding ticket will not show up here, but it does cover the specific offenses tied to safety.
This form is filed under seal with the court. It is not a public record. Only the judge and the attorneys involved in the case are able to review it.
How Criminal Charges and PFA Orders Intersect With Your Custody Case
It is common for a criminal charge, a Protection From Abuse petition, and a custody case to be moving at the same time, especially when a confrontation between parents leads to more than one type of legal proceeding. How each of those matters resolves can influence the others. A criminal conviction for a relevant offense, or a judicial finding of abuse in a PFA case, can affect how a judge evaluates safety in the custody case.
Because of this overlap, it is important to have legal guidance on both fronts at the same time rather than treating the criminal, PFA, and custody matters as unrelated.
What This Means If You’re Facing These Issues
Kayden’s Law does not mean a criminal charge or a filed PFA petition automatically costs a parent their custody rights. It means the court is required to look closely at the circumstances and document its safety reasoning in the order. If you are dealing with a criminal charge, a PFA petition, or a custody case that involves allegations of abuse, the specifics of your situation matter a great deal, and this is a conversation worth having directly with an attorney rather than relying on general information.