Custody

Louisiana judges will assume that any parent who has a history of family violence or domestic abuse should not be awarded sole or joint custody.¹ However, the abusive parent will have a chance to convince the judge that they should get custody anyway. To succeed, the abusive parent must prove all of the following things:

1. they have successfully completed a court-monitored domestic abuse intervention program or a treatment program for sexual abusers;
2. the program was completed after the most recent incident of abuse;
3. the parent is not abusing drugs or alcohol; and
4. it’s in your child’s best interests for the other parent to be a custodial parent because:
   • you are:
     • absent;
     • mentally ill;
     • abusing drugs; or
   • there are other circumstances that negatively affect your child.²

To learn how the judge will decide what’s in your child’s best interests, go to How will a judge make a decision about custody?

If you and the other parent both have a history of family violence, the judge will grant sole custody to the parent who is less likely to commit family violence in the future. The less-violent parent must complete a court-monitored domestic abuse intervention program. However, if the judge believes that neither parent can provide a safe home, they may grant custody to a non-parent instead. The non-parent cannot allow the child to see a violent parent unless the judge orders contact.³

If your child was conceived as a result of rape, see If my child was conceived because of a sexual crime, does the offender have any rights to my child? for more information.

Note: It’s important to know that the judge may also assume that you should not be awarded sole or joint custody if you voluntarily allowed another person to abuse your children or stepchildren when you could have stopped it. If you are in this situation, you can present evidence to convince the judge that you should still be given custody.¹

¹ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:364(A)
² La. Rev. Stat. § 9:364(B)
³ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:364(D)