---
title: "Record whether a custody pleading shows a contest"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/family-law/work-out-whether-a-dispute-resolution-certificate-or-an-exemption-is-req/united-states"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A16-CO20261022-3-US"
practice_area: "Family Law"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["US"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-22"
---

# Record whether a custody pleading shows a contest

> State whether the face of the petition, application, or other pleading shows that custody, visitation, or both are contested, and whether the file shows that the contested issues were set for mediation.…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/family-law/work-out-whether-a-dispute-resolution-certificate-or-an-exemption-is-req/united-states  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Family Law](https://ailawframework.com/practice/family-law.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | State whether the face of the petition, application, or other pleading shows that custody, visitation, or both are contested, and whether the file shows that the contested issues were set for mediation. Write no evidence and no certificate. |
| What the lawyer must review | Section 3170(a) says that if 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, the court shall set the contested issues for mediation. The section is not a certificate that must be obtained before filing, and it states no period of validity. Subdivision (b) says domestic-violence cases shall be handled by Family Court Services under a separate written protocol approved by the Judicial Council. That protocol was not opened. The section became operative on 1 January 2020. Section 3020 still makes the health, safety, and welfare of children the primary concern of a custody or visitation order. You decide whether the pleading shows a contest and whether mediation was set. |
| Written for | United States |
| Applies to | [Work out whether a dispute-resolution certificate or an exemption is required before filing](https://ailawframework.com/practice/family-law/work-out-whether-a-dispute-resolution-certificate-or-an-exemption-is-req.md) |

## Checking plan

- What the AI does: State whether the face of the petition, application, or other pleading shows that custody, visitation, or both are contested, and whether the file shows that the contested issues were set for mediation. Write no evidence and no certificate.
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 22 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Notes

- This mediation setting rule is California. Another state does not use this section.
- The Judicial Council domestic-violence protocol was not opened.

## Sources

- [California Family Code § 3170 (mediation of contested custody)](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=FAM&sectionNum=3170) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [California Family Code § 3020 (health, safety, and welfare)](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=FAM&sectionNum=3020) (checked 2026-10-22)

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*