The New York Legislature passed A8382A/S9316 in June 2026, a bill that replaces "mother" with "gestating parent," "father" with "non-gestating parent," and "paternity" with "parentage" throughout the Family Court Act, Domestic Relations Law, and child support statutes. As of July 1, 2026, Governor Kathy Hochul had not signed or vetoed it; if signed, the terminology change takes effect November 1, 2026, affecting roughly 150,000 annual New York divorce and custody cases.
Key Facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| What happened | NY Legislature passed A8382A/S9316, a gender-neutral terminology overhaul of family law |
| When | Passed June 2026; awaiting Governor Hochul's signature as of July 1, 2026 |
| Where | New York State (all 62 counties) |
| Who's affected | Divorcing parents, custody litigants, and roughly 150,000 annual family cases |
| Key statutes | Family Court Act, Domestic Relations Law, and Family Court Act support provisions |
| Effective date | November 1, 2026, if signed before year-end 2026 |
Why this matters legally
This bill changes the language New York courts use to identify parents, but it does not change the substantive rights those parents hold. According to Fox News, A8382A/S9316 swaps "mother" for "gestating parent," "father" for "non-gestating parent," and "paternity" for "parentage" across the statutes that govern custody, support, and parentage disputes. The legal standards courts apply — best interests of the child, equitable distribution of marital property, and the Child Support Standards Act formula — remain unchanged. What changes is the vocabulary in petitions, orders, and judgments.
Terminology in family law is not merely cosmetic, because the words in a statute define who has standing to file and what must be proven. New York already recognized non-biological parentage through the 2021 Child-Parent Security Act and the landmark 2016 Court of Appeals decision in Brooke S.B. v. Elizabeth A.C.C., which expanded standing for non-biological parents. A8382A/S9316 aligns the statutory text with that existing body of law rather than creating new rights. For most divorcing couples, the practical effect is that court forms and orders will read "gestating parent" and "non-gestating parent" instead of "mother" and "father."
How New York law handles this
New York custody and support law operates through three primary statutory frameworks, and A8382A/S9316 touches the language in all three without altering their tests. Under N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 240, custody and parenting decisions turn on the best interests of the child — a standard that already applies regardless of a parent's gender or biological role. Under N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 236, marital property is divided through equitable distribution, weighing factors such as the length of the marriage and each spouse's contributions, again independent of the labels "mother" or "father."
Child support in New York is calculated under the Child Support Standards Act, codified at N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 240 and the parallel Family Court Act provisions, which apply fixed percentages to combined parental income: 17% for one child, 25% for two, 29% for three, 31% for four, and no less than 35% for five or more. These percentages do not change under A8382A/S9316. A parent seeking to estimate obligations can use our child support calculator for New York to model payments under the current formula, which the bill leaves intact.
Parentage determinations — historically framed as "paternity" proceedings under the Family Court Act — will be relabeled "parentage" proceedings. This tracks New York's Child-Parent Security Act, which since 2021 has governed parentage for children born through assisted reproduction and surrogacy. The relabeling clarifies that a parentage petition is available to any parent, not only a biological father, but the burden of proof and the court's inquiry remain governed by existing case law. Readers navigating a custody dispute can review how child custody arrangements work in practice and how courts structure parenting plans around the best-interests standard.
Practical takeaways
For New York residents facing divorce or a custody matter, here are the concrete steps this legislation calls for:
-
Expect new terminology on court documents starting November 1, 2026, if Hochul signs. Petitions, orders, and judgments will use "gestating parent," "non-gestating parent," and "parentage" — but your legal rights and obligations do not change with the labels.
-
Do not delay filing on account of the pending change. The best-interests standard under N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 240 and the equitable-distribution rules under N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 236 apply identically before and after the effective date.
-
Confirm which term applies to you. In most cases, the "gestating parent" is the person who was pregnant with the child, and the "non-gestating parent" is the other legal parent — but ask your attorney how the label attaches in adoption, surrogacy, or assisted-reproduction situations.
-
Review existing orders for consistency. If you have a support or custody order predating the change, it remains valid; you generally will not need to amend it solely because the statutory vocabulary changed.
-
Build your plan before you file. A personalized divorce roadmap can help you organize custody, support, and property questions, and you can find a New York divorce attorney to confirm how the new terminology affects your specific paperwork.
If you are weighing a divorce or custody filing in New York, the terminology shift in A8382A/S9316 should not be a source of anxiety — the underlying law that determines your parenting time, support, and property division is unchanged. The most useful step now is to understand the standards that actually govern your case and to get your documentation in order before you file.
This article discusses recent news and provides general legal commentary. It does not constitute legal advice. Every case is unique. Consult a qualified family law attorney for advice specific to your situation.