Kyra’s Law is a New York reform that puts a child’s physical safety at the center of every custody and visitation decision when domestic violence or child abuse is alleged. Part of it is already the law: since 2022, anyone performing a court-ordered forensic custody evaluation must be licensed and certified through a state-approved training program. The broader package, which rewrites how judges must handle safety allegations, was reintroduced in the 2025–2026 legislative session as Assembly Bill A6194B and is still pending.1New York State Senate. New York State Assembly Bill 2025-A6194B
Why the Law Exists
Kyra Franchetti was killed by her father during a court-sanctioned visit in Virginia in July 2016. He shot her while she slept, then set his house on fire and killed himself. Concerns about the father’s behavior had been raised before the visit, but the court allowed unsupervised contact anyway. Her mother, together with survivors and advocacy organizations, spent years pushing the New York Legislature to require courts to investigate safety risks before granting custody or visitation.
What Is Already in Effect
Chapter 740 of the Laws of 2022 established certification requirements for forensic custody evaluators, and that piece is fully operational. A professional performing a court-ordered custody evaluation in New York must hold a valid state license as a psychologist, social worker, or psychiatrist.2Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence. Forensic Custody Evaluator (FCE) Certification On top of that, evaluators must complete a training program run jointly by the Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and they must keep up with ongoing training to maintain certification.3Office of the Professions. Requirements for Forensic Custody Evaluators
If you are in an active custody case and a court-appointed evaluator lacks the required certification, you have grounds to challenge the evaluation.
Domestic Relations Law Section 240 also already requires courts to consider the effect of proven domestic violence on a child’s best interests and to state their findings on the record. The pending bill builds on that foundation rather than replacing it.
Child Safety as the Threshold Question
The central change in the pending bill is structural. The legislative intent section states that “the safety of children is of paramount importance” and that “judicial decisions regarding custody of, and access to, children shall promote the safety of children as a threshold issue.”1New York State Senate. New York State Assembly Bill 2025-A6194B The traditional “best interests of the child” standard stays in place, but safety moves ahead of other factors, including the child’s relationship with each parent.
Under the proposed framework, a parent who poses a substantial risk of harm cannot receive custody, and the court must state on the record how its safety findings shaped the final order.4New York State Assembly. A06194 The bill also aligns Domestic Relations Law Section 70 with the new safety provisions so that Supreme Court and Family Court proceedings apply the same standard.
Limits on Parental Alienation Arguments
When one parent alleges abuse, the other often responds by accusing that parent of trying to alienate the child. Courts have sometimes accepted that framing, and the protective parent has ended up losing custody for raising the concern in the first place. The bill closes that route when abuse allegations are credible.
It would prohibit admitting parental alienation allegations against a party who has credibly alleged domestic violence or child abuse. Courts could not presume that a child’s reluctance to interact with a parent was caused by the other parent. Any psychological label tied to a child’s resistance to contact with a parent would be inadmissible unless supported by empirical proof of scientific reliability and generally accepted in the professional community.5New York State Senate. New York State Senate Bill 2023-S3170A
Courts would also be barred from ordering a child into a reunification camp or treatment program designed to force contact with a parent, unless both parties and the child’s attorney consent and the program has scientifically validated evidence of effectiveness.5New York State Senate. New York State Senate Bill 2023-S3170A
A Prompt Evidentiary Hearing When Safety Is Alleged
The bill would require a prompt evidentiary hearing whenever a party or the attorney for the child raises facially credible allegations that, if true, would pose a substantial risk to the child’s safety. The hearing has a narrow purpose: decide whether temporary limits on custody or visitation are needed to protect the child. The court must consider a party’s history of domestic violence, child abuse, and other incidents involving harm, along with police reports and domestic incident reports.4New York State Assembly. A06194
At the first court appearance, both parties would be advised of their right to counsel and given an adjournment of up to 30 days to retain a lawyer. Eligible parties and all children in the proceeding would be assigned attorneys.1New York State Senate. New York State Assembly Bill 2025-A6194B The court must also explain the basis for any custody and visitation determination on the record.4New York State Assembly. A06194
An Attorney for the Child in Every Abuse Case
Under current law, judges have discretion over whether to appoint an attorney to represent a child in a custody proceeding. The pending bill would remove that discretion whenever domestic violence or child abuse allegations are present. In those cases the court must appoint an attorney for the child, who operates independently of either parent and advocates for the child’s interests and safety.1New York State Senate. New York State Assembly Bill 2025-A6194B
Additional Requirements for Forensic Evaluators
On top of the certification rules already in effect, the pending bill would set specific protocols for evaluators handling cases involving domestic violence or sexual abuse. An evaluator would need to review all relevant police reports, domestic incident reports, and medical records before issuing a recommendation. The point is to prevent a report that ignores documented history from steering a judge toward an unsafe outcome.
Judicial Training on Domestic Violence
The bill would add recurring education requirements to the Judiciary Law for every judge handling custody and visitation cases.4New York State Assembly. A06194 The curriculum covers coercive control, the pattern of non-physical dominance and intimidation that often goes unrecognized because it leaves no visible injuries, and the way trauma affects children’s behavior. A traumatized child who appears calm or affectionate toward an abusive parent may be showing a survival response, not a lack of fear, and an untrained observer can misread that easily. Training would be developed with domestic violence experts and survivor advocates.
Protection for Parents Who Report in Good Faith
New York law already provides that a parent who makes a good-faith allegation of child abuse or domestic violence, based on a reasonable belief supported by facts, cannot be deprived of custody or visitation solely for raising the concern or taking lawful steps to protect the child. The pending bill reinforces that principle by pairing it with the alienation restrictions and the evidentiary hearing requirement, so a parent who reports abuse is not stripped of custody for doing so.
What This Means for a Custody Case Right Now
If you are in a New York custody dispute where safety is a real concern, one part of Kyra’s Law is enforceable today: any court-ordered custody evaluation must be performed by a licensed, certified evaluator who has completed the OPDV-approved training.2Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence. Forensic Custody Evaluator (FCE) Certification Confirm the evaluator’s credentials early. Domestic Relations Law Section 240’s existing protections still apply, including the requirement that courts consider proven domestic violence and place their findings on the record.
The rest of the framework, including the safety-first threshold, the mandatory evidentiary hearing, the alienation restrictions, the automatic appointment of an attorney for the child, and the judicial training requirement, depends on passage of A6194B. Until the bill becomes law, those provisions cannot be enforced, and a case proceeds under existing New York custody law.