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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 926
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR NURRENBERN.
3857S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal sections 452.305 and 452.310, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
relating to a judgment of dissolution of marriage or legal separation.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 452.305 and 452.310, RSMo, are 1
repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be 2
known as sections 452.305 and 452.310, to read as follows:3
452.305. 1. The court shall enter a judgment of 1
dissolution of marriage if: 2
(1) The court finds that one of the parties has been a 3
resident of this state, or is a member of the armed services 4
who has been stationed in this state, for ninety days 5
immediately preceding the commencement of the proceeding and 6
that thirty days have elapsed since the filing of the 7
petition; and 8
(2) The court finds that there remains no reasonable 9
likelihood that the marriage can be preserved and that 10
therefore the marriage is irretrievably broken; and 11
(3) To the extent it has jurisdiction, the court has 12
considered and made provision for child custody, the support 13
of each child, the maintenance of either spouse and the 14
disposition of property. 15
2. The court shall enter a judgment of legal 16
separation if: 17
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(1) The court finds that one of the parties has been a 18
resident of this state, or is a member of the armed services 19
who has been stationed in this state, for ninety days 20
immediately preceding the commencement of the proceeding and 21
that thirty days have elapsed since the filing of the 22
petition; and 23
(2) The court finds that there remains a reasonable 24
likelihood that the marriage can 25
be preserved and that therefore the marriage is not 26
irretrievably broken; and 27
(3) To the extent it has jurisdiction, the court has 28
considered and made provision for the custody and the 29
support of each child, the maintenance of either spouse and 30
the disposition of property. 31
3. Pregnancy status shall not prevent the court from 32
entering a judgment of dissolution of marriage or legal 33
separation. 34
4. Any judgment of dissolution of marriage or legal 35
separation shall include the last four digits of the Social 36
Security numbers of the parties. The full Social Security 37
number of each party and each child shall be retained in the 38
manner required under section 509.520. 39
452.310. 1. In any proceeding commenced pursuant to 1
this chapter, the petition, a motion to modify, a motion for 2
a family access order and a motion for contempt shall be 3
verified. The petition in a proceeding for dissolution of 4
marriage shall allege that the marriage is irretrievably 5
broken and that therefore there remains no reasonable 6
likelihood that the marriage can be preserved. The petition 7
in a proceeding for legal separation shall allege that the 8
marriage is not irretrievably broken and that therefore 9
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there remains a reasonable likelihood that the marriage can 10
be preserved. 11
2. The petition in a proceeding for dissolution of 12
marriage or legal separation shall set forth: 13
(1) The residence of each party, including the county, 14
and the length of residence of each party in this state and 15
in the county of residence; 16
(2) The date of the marriage and the place at which it 17
is registered; 18
(3) The date on which the parties separated; 19
(4) The name, age, and address of each child, and the 20
parent with whom each child has primarily resided for the 21
sixty days immediately preceding the filing of the petition 22
for dissolution of marriage or legal separation; 23
(5) Whether the wife is pregnant; however, pregnancy 24
status shall not prevent the court from entering a judgment 25
of dissolution of marriage or legal separation; 26
(6) The last four digits of the Social Security number 27
of the petitioner, respondent and each child; 28
(7) Any arrangements as to the custody and support of 29
the children and the maintenance of each party; and 30
(8) The relief sought. 31
3. Upon the filing of the petition in a proceeding for 32
dissolution of marriage or legal separation, each child 33
shall immediately be subject to the jurisdiction of the 34
court in which the proceeding is commenced, unless a 35
proceeding involving allegations of abuse or neglect of the 36
child is pending in juvenile court. Until permitted by 37
order of the court, neither parent shall remove any child 38
from the jurisdiction of the court or from any parent with 39
whom the child has primarily resided for the sixty days 40
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immediately preceding the filing of a petition for 41
dissolution of marriage or legal separation. 42
4. The mere fact that one parent has actual possession 43
of the child at the time of filing shall not create a 44
preference in favor of such parent in any judicial 45
determination regarding custody of the child. 46
5. The respondent shall be served in the manner 47
provided by the rules of the supreme court and applicable 48
court rules and, to avoid an interlocutory judgment of 49
default, shall file a verified answer within thirty days of 50
the date of service which shall not only admit or deny the 51
allegations of the petition, but shall also set forth: 52
(1) The last four digits of the Social Security number 53
of the petitioner, respondent and each child; 54
(2) Any arrangements as to the custody and support of 55
the child and the maintenance of each party; and 56
(3) The relief sought. 57
6. Previously existing defenses to divorce and legal 58
separation, including but not limited to condonation, 59
connivance, collusion, recrimination, insanity, and lapse of 60
time, are abolished. 61
7. The full Social Security number of each party and 62
each child and the date of birth of each child shall be 63
provided in the manner required under section 509.520. 64
8. The petitioner and respondent shall submit a 65
proposed parenting plan, either individually or jointly, 66
within thirty days after service of process or the filing of 67
the entry of appearance, whichever event first occurs of a 68
motion to modify or a petition involving custody or 69
visitation issues. The proposed parenting plan shall set 70
forth the arrangements that the party believes to be in the 71
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best interest of the minor children and shall include but 72
not be limited to: 73
(1) A specific written schedule detailing the custody, 74
visitation and residential time for each child with each 75
party including: 76
(a) Major holidays stating which holidays a party has 77
each year; 78
(b) School holidays for school-age children; 79
(c) The child's birthday, Mother's Day and Father's 80
Day; 81
(d) Weekday and weekend schedules and for school-age 82
children how the winter, spring, summer and other vacations 83
from school will be spent; 84
(e) The times and places for transfer of the child 85
between the parties in connection with the residential 86
schedule; 87
(f) A plan for sharing transportation duties 88
associated with the residential schedule; 89
(g) Appropriate times for telephone access; 90
(h) Suggested procedures for notifying the other party 91
when a party requests a temporary variation from the 92
residential schedule; 93
(i) Any suggested restrictions or limitations on 94
access to a party and the reasons such restrictions are 95
requested; 96
(2) A specific written plan regarding legal custody 97
which details how the decision-making rights and 98
responsibilities will be shared between the parties 99
including the following: 100
(a) Educational decisions and methods of communicating 101
information from the school to both parties; 102
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(b) Medical, dental and health care decisions 103
including how health care providers will be selected and a 104
method of communicating medical conditions of the child and 105
how emergency care will be handled; 106
(c) Extracurricular activities, including a method for 107
determining which activities the child will participate in 108
when those activities involve time during which each party 109
is the custodian; 110
(d) Child care providers, including how such providers 111
will be selected; 112
(e) Communication procedures including access to 113
telephone numbers as appropriate; 114
(f) A dispute resolution procedure for those matters 115
on which the parties disagree or in interpreting the 116
parenting plan; 117
(g) If a party suggests no shared decision-making, a 118
statement of the reasons for such a request; 119
(3) How the expenses of the child, including child 120
care, educational and extraordinary expenses as defined in 121
the child support guidelines established by the supreme 122
court, will be paid including: 123
(a) The suggested amount of child support to be paid 124
by each party; 125
(b) The party who will maintain or provide health 126
insurance for the child and how the medical, dental, vision, 127
psychological and other health care expenses of the child 128
not paid by insurance will be paid by the parties; 129
(c) The payment of educational expenses, if any; 130
(d) The payment of extraordinary expenses of the 131
child, if any; 132
(e) Child care expenses, if any; 133
(f) Transportation expenses, if any. 134
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9. If the proposed parenting plans of the parties 135
differ and the parties cannot resolve the differences or if 136
any party fails to file a proposed parenting plan, upon 137
motion of either party and an opportunity for the parties to 138
be heard, the court shall enter a temporary order containing 139
a parenting plan setting forth the arrangements specified in 140
subsection 8 of this section which will remain in effect 141
until further order of the court. The temporary order 142
entered by the court shall not create a preference for the 143
court in its adjudication of final custody, child support or 144
visitation. 145
10. The Missouri supreme court shall have guidelines 146
for a parenting plan which may be used by the parties 147
pursuant to this section in any dissolution of marriage, 148
legal separation or modification proceeding involving issues 149
of custody and visitation relating to the child. Parenting 150
plan guidelines shall be made available on the office of 151
state courts administrator's website. 152
11. The filing of a parenting plan for any child over 153
the age of eighteen for whom custody, visitation, or support 154
is being established or modified by a court of competent 155
jurisdiction is not required. Nothing in this section shall 156
be construed as precluding the filing of a parenting plan 157
upon agreement of the parties or if ordered to do so by the 158
court for any child over the age of eighteen for whom 159
custody, visitation, or support is being established or 160
modified by a court of competent jurisdiction. 161
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