Ind. Code § 31-17-2-21

Modification of child custody order

Applied in 49 court decisions — leading case Kirk v. Kirk (2002)

Most recently applied in Robert E. Redington v. State of Indiana (April 2019)

As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.9

How often courts cite this section

citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

Sec. 21. (a) The court may not modify a child custody order unless:

(1) the modification is in the best interests of the child; and

(2) there is a substantial change in one (1) or more of the factors that the court may consider under section 8 and, if applicable, section 8.5 of this chapter.

(b) In making its determination, the court shall consider the factors listed under section 8 of this chapter.

(c) The court shall not hear evidence on a matter occurring before the last custody proceeding between the parties unless the matter relates to a change in the factors relating to the best interests of the child as described by section 8 and, if applicable, section 8.5 of this chapter.

Official source: Indiana General Assembly. Reproduced from public-domain Indiana statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.