A.R.S. § 25-403 — Legal Decision-Making and the Best Interests of the Child

The factors

• The past, present, and potential future relationship between each parent and the child
• The child’s interaction and relationships with parents, siblings, and others who affect the child’s interests
• The child’s adjustment to home, school, and community
• The wishes of the child, if of suitable age and maturity
• The mental and physical health of all individuals involved
• Which parent is more likely to allow frequent, meaningful, and continuing contact with the other parent
• Whether a parent intentionally misled the court to gain advantage or cause delay
• Whether there has been domestic violence or child abuse
• Whether a parent used coercion or duress in obtaining an agreement
• Compliance with the required parent education program
• Whether a parent made a false report of child abuse or neglect

No single factor controls, and the court weighs all that are relevant. In a contested case the judge must make specific written findings on the record about each relevant factor and the reasons the decision is in the child’s best interests — findings an appellate court can review, which is why building a factor-by-factor record matters.

The statutes around it

Section 25-403 does not work alone. Joint legal decision-making is addressed in § 25-403.01, which also directs courts to maximize each parent’s parenting time consistent with the child’s best interests. Significant domestic violence creates a presumption against the offending parent under § 25-403.03, and recent substance abuse raises a similar presumption under § 25-403.04. Parenting plans are governed by § 25-403.02.

How the factors are argued

Custody cases are won with evidence mapped to the statute: school records and teacher contact for adjustment, communication logs for the willingness-to-allow-contact factor, treatment records where health is in issue. Vague character arguments do little; factor-anchored proof does the work. Our child custody page covers legal decision-making and parenting time in full.