HB 1717 New Hampshire House · 2026 Regular Session

relative to the jurisdiction of the circuit court, family division.

HB 1717 reorganizes New Hampshire's family court system by establishing the "judicial branch family division" as a statutory court (not constitutional), replacing "marital masters" with administrative law judges. It requires all family matters for a single family to be handled by one administrative law judge in a geographically accessible court, mandates full judicial review of all recommendations, and ensures constitutional protections for children's rights in all proceedings. The bill directly affects families involved in divorce, custody, child support, and other family law cases handled in the state's family courts. Key mechanisms include standardized training for administrative law judges, mandatory consent acknowledgments before hearings, and explicit requirements for judicial review to prevent infringement of fundamental rights.
Bill status failed 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Dec 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Dec 12, 2025 Last action Feb 12, 2026
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Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
5
Key actions
0
Committee
1
Feb 2, 2026
Committee
Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate 01/27/2026 (Vote 15-0; CC) HC 6 P. 3
lower
Dec 12, 2025
Introduced
Introduced 01/07/2026 and referred to Children and Family Law HJ 1 P. 32
lower
1 primary · 7 co-sponsors

Sponsors