Bill Commons

CA AB 2789

enacted

Mediation: child custody and visitation.

California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · lower

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Quick answers

Did CA AB 2789 pass?

Yes. CA AB 2789 has been enacted into law. Latest recorded action (2026-08-22): Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 118, Statutes of 2026.

What is CA AB 2789 about?

Existing law requires the court, for purposes of deciding custody, to determine the best interests of the child based on certain factors, including the nature and amount of contact with both parents and, consistent with specified findings, requires the court's primary concern to be the health, safety, and welfare of the child. Existing law requires a court to set the contested issues for mediation when it appears on the face of a petition, application, or other pleading to obtain or modify a temporary or permanent custody or visitation order that custody, visitation, or both are contested. Existing law requires notice of mediation to be given to each party, and where a stepparent or grandparent seeks visitation rights, to the stepparent or grandparent seeking visitation rights, to each parent of the child, and to each parent's counsel of record. Existing law requires notice to be given by certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, to the last known address. This bill would require all parties to be given written notice of mediation, including, among others, by court staff when all parties are present for a court hearing. The bill would require the court to develop a notice of mediation that includes that all communications between the mediator and the disputing parties are required to be confidential and, if there has been a history of domestic violence between the parties or a protective order is in effect, that the mediator is required to meet with the parties separately and at separate times at the request of the party alleging domestic violence, as specified.

Who sponsors CA AB 2789?

Committee on Judiciary is the primary sponsor of CA AB 2789.

Description

Existing law requires the court, for purposes of deciding custody, to determine the best interests of the child based on certain factors, including the nature and amount of contact with both parents and, consistent with specified findings, requires the court's primary concern to be the health, safety, and welfare of the child. Existing law requires a court to set the contested issues for mediation when it appears on the face of a petition, application, or other pleading to obtain or modify a temporary or permanent custody or visitation order that custody, visitation, or both are contested. Existing law requires notice of mediation to be given to each party, and where a stepparent or grandparent seeks visitation rights, to the stepparent or grandparent seeking visitation rights, to each parent of the child, and to each parent's counsel of record. Existing law requires notice to be given by certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, to the last known address. This bill would require all parties to be given written notice of mediation, including, among others, by court staff when all parties are present for a court hearing. The bill would require the court to develop a notice of mediation that includes that all communications between the mediator and the disputing parties are required to be confidential and, if there has been a history of domestic violence between the parties or a protective order is in effect, that the mediator is required to meet with the parties separately and at separate times at the request of the party alleging domestic violence, as specified.

Introduced
2026-06-10
Latest action
2026-08-22 — Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 118, Statutes of 2026.
Bill type
bill
Last updated
—

Subjects

Sponsors

  • Committee on Judiciaryauthor

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

Newest first

  1. 2026-08-22

    Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 118, Statutes of 2026.

    became-law

  2. 2026-08-22

    Approved by the Governor.

    executive-signature

  3. 2026-08-10

    Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 1 p.m.

    executive-receipt

  4. 2026-08-03

    Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 74. Noes 0. Page 6031.).

    amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable

  5. 2026-08-03

    Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 74. Noes 0.).

    amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable

  6. 2026-06-25

    In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.

  7. 2026-06-25

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 36. Noes 0. Page 5015.).

    passage,reading-1,reading-3

  8. 2026-06-25

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 36. Noes 0.).

    passage,reading-1,reading-3

  9. 2026-06-23

    Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar.

    reading-1,reading-2

  10. 2026-06-22

    From committee: Be ordered to second reading file pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8 and ordered to Consent Calendar.

    committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2

  11. 2026-06-11

    Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

    amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee

  12. 2026-06-10

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (June 9).

    amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,referral-committee

  13. 2026-05-27

    Referred to Com. on JUD.

    referral-committee

  14. 2026-05-14

    In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

    reading-1,referral-committee

  15. 2026-05-14

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 5057.)

    passage,reading-1,reading-3

  16. 2026-05-07

    Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar.

    reading-1,reading-2

  17. 2026-05-06

    From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (May 6).

    committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable

  18. 2026-04-22

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (April 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

    committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee

  19. 2026-03-23

    Referred to Com. on JUD.

    referral-committee

  20. 2026-03-17

    From printer. May be heard in committee April 16.

  21. 2026-03-16

    Read first time. To print.

    reading-1

Versions

  • 03/16/26 - Introduced — 2026-03-16Compare
  • 06/11/26 - Amended Senate — 2026-06-11Compare
  • 08/05/26 - Enrolled — 2026-08-05Compare
  • 08/22/26 - Chaptered — 2026-08-22Compare
  • AB2789Compare
  • (document, no version)Compare

Documents

Votes

  • Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with recommendation: To Consent Calendar

    2026-04-21 · pass · 12-0

    Member-level votes (12)
    • Zbur: yes
    • Papan: yes
    • Connolly: yes
    • Bauer-Kahan: yes
    • Bryan: yes
    • Dixon: yes
    • Sanchez: yes
    • Kalra: yes
    • Harabedian: yes
    • Pacheco: yes
    • Macedo: yes
    • Stefani: yes

  • Do pass. To Consent Calendar.

    2026-05-06 · pass · 14-0

    Member-level votes (15)
    • Sharp-Collins: yes
    • Aguiar-Curry: yes
    • Solache: yes
    • Tangipa: yes
    • Fong: yes
    • Pellerin: yes
    • Pacheco: yes
    • Dixon: yes
    • Caloza: yes
    • Mark González: yes
    • Ta: yes
    • Wicks: yes
    • Krell: yes
    • Hoover: yes
    • Arambula: other

  • AB 2789 Judiciary Consent Calendar Second Day

    2026-05-14 · pass · 77-0

    Member-level votes (80)
    • Petrie-Norris: yes
    • Chen: yes
    • Bryan: yes
    • Berman: yes
    • Blanca Rubio: yes
    • Schiavo: yes
    • Kalra: yes
    • Johnson: yes
    • Wallis: yes
    • Rogers: yes
    • Macedo: yes
    • Pacheco: yes
    • Pellerin: yes
    • Aguiar-Curry: yes
    • Soria: yes
    • Muratsuchi: yes
    • Sanchez: yes
    • Quirk-Silva: yes
    • Lowenthal: yes
    • Solache: yes
    • Wilson: yes
    • DeMaio: yes
    • Lackey: yes
    • Hart: yes
    • Ortega: yes
    • Jeff Gonzalez: yes
    • Dixon: yes
    • Papan: yes
    • Davies: yes
    • Irwin: yes
    • Nguyen: yes
    • Ransom: yes
    • Lee: yes
    • Fong: yes
    • Bennett: yes
    • Ward: yes
    • Krell: yes
    • Wicks: yes
    • Harabedian: yes
    • Alvarez: yes
    • Carrillo: yes
    • Ta: yes
    • Addis: yes
    • Ahrens: yes
    • Schultz: yes
    • Michelle Rodriguez: yes
    • Zbur: yes
    • Caloza: yes
    • Bains: yes
    • McKinnor: yes
    • Alanis: yes
    • Haney: yes
    • Ramos: yes
    • Tangipa: yes
    • Rivas: yes
    • Gallagher: yes
    • Calderon: yes
    • Stefani: yes
    • Connolly: yes
    • Ellis: yes
    • Bonta: yes
    • Ávila Farías: yes
    • Garcia: yes
    • Sharp-Collins: yes
    • Patel: yes
    • Elhawary: yes
    • Valencia: yes
    • Jackson: yes
    • Hoover: yes
    • Gipson: yes
    • Bauer-Kahan: yes
    • Gabriel: yes
    • Patterson: yes
    • Castillo: yes
    • Hadwick: yes
    • Mark González: yes
    • Boerner: yes
    • Arambula: other
    • Celeste Rodriguez: other
    • Flora: other

  • Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Appropriations] with the recommendation: To Consent Calendar

    2026-06-09 · pass · 12-0

    Member-level votes (13)
    • Wahab: yes
    • Ashby: yes
    • Laird: yes
    • Allen: yes
    • Reyes: yes
    • Niello: yes
    • Weber Pierson: yes
    • Umberg: yes
    • Caballero: yes
    • Wiener: yes
    • Durazo: yes
    • Valladares: yes
    • Stern: other

  • Consent Calendar 2nd AB2789 JUD.

    2026-06-25 · pass · 36-0

    Member-level votes (40)
    • Gonzalez: yes
    • Hurtado: yes
    • Limón: yes
    • Cabaldon: yes
    • Padilla: yes
    • Blakespear: yes
    • Grayson: yes
    • Ochoa Bogh: yes
    • Wahab: yes
    • Cervantes: yes
    • Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
    • Rubio: yes
    • Durazo: yes
    • Cortese: yes
    • Grove: yes
    • Laird: yes
    • Seyarto: yes
    • Niello: yes
    • McGuire: yes
    • Archuleta: yes
    • Allen: yes
    • Caballero: yes
    • Choi: yes
    • Umberg: yes
    • Richardson: yes
    • Wiener: yes
    • Ashby: yes
    • Pérez: yes
    • Becker: yes
    • Arreguín: yes
    • Weber Pierson: yes
    • Strickland: yes
    • Stern: yes
    • Valladares: yes
    • Menjivar: yes
    • McNerney: yes
    • Dahle: other
    • Reyes: other
    • Jones: other
    • Alvarado-Gil: other

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB2789

Attribution

Data from openstates_api_sync, retrieved 2026-08-23T21:18:55.794232Z

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