Relating to the qualifications, communications, and recordkeeping of a child custody evaluator and the admissibility of a child custody evaluation under certain circumstances.

Contracts

• Engagement Letters (Evaluators): You must amend engagement letters to include a representation that the evaluator meets the IDD training requirements of Section 107.104(f).
• Vendor Agreements (Attorneys): Insert a warranty clause requiring evaluators to confirm they possess the required 3 hours of IDD training within the preceding 24 months before accepting an appointment.
• Fee Agreements: Review billing terms. If redaction is time-consuming, ensure your contract permits billing for "administrative document preparation/redaction."

Hiring/Training

• Mandatory Screening: Before accepting an appointment, evaluators must screen for IDD factors. If present, the evaluator must have completed 3 hours of IDD-specific training (education, therapy, independent living preparation) within the last two years.
• Staff Training: Administrative staff handling record requests must be trained immediately on the new redaction protocols (scrubbing SSNs and DOBs).

Reporting & Record-Keeping

• New Redaction Workflow: You may no longer produce raw files upon request. You must implement a review-and-redact phase to remove Social Security Numbers and child birth dates from all disclosures.
• Retention Trigger: Update your document retention schedules. The "destroy date" is now calculated from the filing of the Notice of Completion, not the filing of the evaluation report.
• Training Logs: Maintain specific certificates for IDD training separate from general CE credits to facilitate rapid production if admissibility is challenged.

Fees & Costs

• Labor Costs: Expect increased administrative overhead per case due to the manual redaction requirement.
• Liability Risk: Non-compliance results in the inadmissibility of the report, leading to potential breach of contract claims and fee disgorgement.