Best-interest factors. Twelve or sixteen. Filing date controls.
A walk-through of Pennsylvania's custody best-interest factors. Choose the framework that applies to your case — the twelve-factor test under Act 11 of 2025 (cases filed on or after August 29, 2025) or the sixteen-factor framework under prior law. Your positions and notes save automatically.
Custody decisions in Pennsylvania come down to the best interest of the child, evaluated against statutory factors. Allegheny County applies two frameworks depending on filing date: the streamlined twelve-factor test under Act 11 of 2025 for cases filed on or after August 29, 2025, and the prior sixteen-factor framework (including the Kayden's Law factor at 23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(2.1)) for cases filed before that date.
This worksheet supports both. Choose the framework that applies to your case, work through each factor, mark how the facts position you, and add notes you can share with counsel. Your inputs save automatically.
This is a planning tool, not a prediction. Custody decisions are intensely fact-driven and turn on judgment, not arithmetic. The point of working through the factors is to build a clear-eyed picture of where the case actually stands — what facts support your position, what facts cut against it, what factors are unsettled, and where credible evidence lives. That picture is what drives a productive conversation with counsel.
Step 1 · Choose Your Framework
Which custody framework applies to your case?
Your Progress
0 of 12 factors
Step 2
Work Through Each Factor
For each factor, mark the position the facts of your case support, and add notes you'll want to discuss with counsel. Your work saves automatically.
Factor 1 of 12
Which party is more likely to encourage and permit frequent and continuing contact between the child and another party
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(1) · Act 11 of 2025
Courts pay significant attention to whether each parent supports the child's relationship with the other parent. Past efforts to facilitate contact, communication patterns, and any history of interference all factor in.
Factor 2 of 12
Present and past abuse committed by a party or member of the party's household, and whether ongoing risk of harm to the child or party exists
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(2) · Act 11 of 2025
Includes physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, as well as coercive control. Active or recent Protection from Abuse orders, criminal proceedings, and CYF involvement carry significant weight. The current safety of the child is the critical question.
Factor 3 of 12
The parental duties performed by each party on behalf of the child
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(3) · Act 11 of 2025
Day-to-day caregiving: drop-offs and pickups, bedtime, meals, homework, doctor appointments, school communication, knowing the pediatrician's name, the teacher's name, what the child is currently working through. The factor strongly favors the parent who has actually been doing the parenting.
Factor 4 of 12
The need for stability and continuity in the child's education, family life, and community life
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(4) · Act 11 of 2025
Where the child is doing well in current circumstances — school, friends, activities, providers — courts are reluctant to disrupt that. Particularly where one parent has been the primary residential parent and that arrangement has worked.
Factor 5 of 12
The availability of extended family
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(5) · Act 11 of 2025
Grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and other family members who provide support and connection. Courts give weight to extended family who are actively involved in the child's life.
Factor 6 of 12
The child's sibling relationships
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(6) · Act 11 of 2025
Pennsylvania courts strongly disfavor splitting siblings absent compelling reason. The factor extends to half-siblings and step-siblings the child is bonded with.
Factor 7 of 12
The well-reasoned preference of the child, based on the child's maturity and judgment
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(7) · Act 11 of 2025
There is no fixed age at which a child's preference becomes determinative. Courts evaluate maturity, the basis of the preference, and whether it appears to be the child's own (versus reflecting parental influence). Older teenagers are typically given significant weight.
Factor 8 of 12
Attempts of a party to turn the child against the other party
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(8) · Act 11 of 2025
Disparagement, communicating case details to the child, encouraging the child to side against the other parent, or other conduct undermining the relationship. This is taken seriously and can dramatically affect the outcome where evidence is clear.
Factor 9 of 12
Which party is more likely to maintain a loving, stable, consistent and nurturing relationship with the child adequate for the child's emotional needs
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(9) · Act 11 of 2025
A general factor about parental capacity for emotional connection and consistent presence. Demonstrated through the parenting history rather than asserted in the abstract.
Factor 10 of 12
Which party is more likely to attend to the daily physical, emotional, developmental, educational and special needs of the child
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(10) · Act 11 of 2025
Particularly important where children have special medical, developmental, or educational needs. The track record of which parent has been managing those needs — appointments, IEP meetings, therapy — matters substantially.
Factor 11 of 12
The proximity of the residences of the parties
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(11) · Act 11 of 2025
Practical: how far apart do the parents live, what does that mean for school, transitions, and frequency of contact. Particularly relevant to shared physical custody schedules.
Factor 12 of 12
Any other relevant factor
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(12) · Act 11 of 2025
A catch-all for facts that materially affect the child's best interest but don't fit neatly under another factor. Use this for circumstances unique to your case.
Factor 1 of 16
Which party is more likely to encourage and permit frequent and continuing contact between the child and another party
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(1) · Prior Law
Same in substance as the corresponding 12-factor provision. Track record of supporting the child's relationship with the other parent.
Factor 2 of 16
Present and past abuse committed by a party or member of the party's household, whether there is a continued risk of harm
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(2) · Prior Law
Physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, plus coercive control. Active or recent PFA orders, criminal proceedings, and CYF involvement carry significant weight.
Factor 2.1 of 16 · Kayden's Law
Specific child-abuse and criminal-conviction factors enumerated under Kayden's Law
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(2.1) · Prior Law
Added by Kayden's Law to address situations involving documented child abuse, certain criminal convictions, and credible safety threats. Specific findings under this factor can substantially limit or supervise custody.
Factor 3 of 16
The parental duties performed by each party on behalf of the child
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(3) · Prior Law
Day-to-day caregiving track record. Drop-offs, pickups, bedtime, meals, homework, doctor appointments, school communication.
Factor 4 of 16
The need for stability and continuity in the child's education, family life, and community life
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(4) · Prior Law
Where the child is doing well, courts are reluctant to disrupt the arrangement.
Factor 5 of 16
The availability of extended family
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(5) · Prior Law
Active grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins who provide support and connection.
Factor 6 of 16
The child's sibling relationships
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(6) · Prior Law
Splitting siblings is strongly disfavored. Includes half-siblings and step-siblings the child is bonded with.
Factor 7 of 16
The well-reasoned preference of the child, based on the child's maturity and judgment
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(7) · Prior Law
No fixed age. Courts evaluate maturity, basis, and apparent independence of the preference.
Factor 8 of 16
Attempts of a party to turn the child against the other party
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(8) · Prior Law
Disparagement, communicating case details to the child, undermining the relationship.
Factor 9 of 16
Which party is more likely to maintain a loving, stable, consistent and nurturing relationship
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(9) · Prior Law
Demonstrated through parenting history.
Factor 10 of 16
Which party is more likely to attend to the daily physical, emotional, developmental, educational and special needs
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(10) · Prior Law
Especially important where children have special needs. Track record of who manages them.
Factor 11 of 16
The proximity of the residences of the parties
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(11) · Prior Law
Distance, school district overlap, transition logistics.
Factor 12 of 16
Each party's availability to care for the child or ability to make appropriate child-care arrangements
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(12) · Prior Law
Work schedules, ability to be present, quality of childcare arrangements when working.
Factor 13 of 16
The level of conflict between the parties and the willingness and ability of the parties to cooperate
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(13) · Prior Law
High-conflict parental relationships argue against shared decision-making and frequent transitions.
Factor 14 of 16
The history of drug or alcohol abuse of a party or member of a party's household
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(14) · Prior Law
Past or current substance abuse, treatment history, relapse risk. Active recovery and demonstrated stability are weighed against history.
Factor 15 of 16
The mental and physical condition of a party or member of a party's household
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(15) · Prior Law
Where it materially affects parenting capacity. Treated mental health is generally not weighed against a parent; untreated conditions affecting parenting capacity are.
Factor 16 of 16
Any other relevant factor
23 Pa.C.S. § 5328(a)(16) · Prior Law
Catch-all for case-specific facts that materially affect the child's best interest.
Where the Picture Stands
Begin marking factors above to see your picture take shape.
As you mark each factor, the assessment updates with where the case appears to stand and what the next conversation with counsel should focus on. The detail you add in the notes is what makes the assessment useful when you bring it to a meeting.
0 favor you0 neutral0 favor other0 unclear
In Practice
How Custody Matters Move in Allegheny County
Custody filings in Allegheny County go to the Department of Court Records on Floor 1 of the City-County Building (414 Grant Street) or are filed online through the DCR portal. Conciliations are scheduled at the Family Law Center, 440 Ross Street. The Custody Hearing Officer system handles most contested matters, with judges available for trial and motions.
The Generations program (the children's issues seminar required for parents in custody matters) is currently administered remotely via Microsoft Teams. Both parents complete it before conciliation.
What to bring to a custody conference. A clean version of this worksheet with your positions and notes. Copies of any school records, medical records, communications you've documented, and court orders from prior proceedings. The Hearing Officer is making practical decisions on a tight schedule; the parent who arrives organized and specific is the parent who gets heard clearly.
This worksheet is a planning tool only. It does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Custody decisions are intensely fact-driven and require evaluation by Pennsylvania family law counsel who can assess your specific situation.
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Pennsylvania-specific. Calculations, statutory references, and guidance reflect Pennsylvania law with an emphasis on Allegheny County practice. If you live or are filing in another state, consult an attorney licensed in your own jurisdiction; the outputs here will not apply to you.
Not for use at trial. These tools are educational aids designed to help users prepare for conversations with counsel. They are not intended for use as evidence at trial, in negotiation, or in any adversarial proceeding. Use them in conjunction with professional legal services from an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.
Not legal advice. This tool is educational. Using it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Pennsylvania family law — statutes, guidelines, and local rules — changes regularly; rely on advice from a licensed attorney before making any legal decision.
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