The bill proposes comprehensive changes to family law in Minnesota, focusing on parenting time, spousal maintenance, and the regulation of antenuptial and postnuptial agreements. It emphasizes the importance of maintaining substantial contact between children and both parents, provided it serves the child's best interests, and establishes a public policy statement to ensure safe environments for children while promoting shared parenting responsibilities. The bill mandates expedited court hearings for temporary relief in cases of denied parenting time or financial access and introduces specific criteria for evaluating the best interests of the child in custody decisions, ensuring that courts do not favor one parent based solely on gender.

Additionally, the bill revises spousal maintenance criteria, emphasizing that custodians should not be required to seek outside employment and establishing guidelines for maintenance duration based on marriage length. It introduces provisions for modifying maintenance due to retirement and other circumstances, while also mandating the creation of a form for maintenance modification motions. The bill updates the legal framework for postnuptial agreements, requiring separate legal representation for both spouses and establishing conditions for enforceability. It also clarifies the legal status of intended parents and donors in assisted reproduction, streamlining the consent process for artificial insemination and ensuring that donors are not recognized as biological fathers in certain contexts.

Statutes affected:
Introduction: 257.025, 518.131, 518.14, 518.17, 518.175
1st Engrossment: 257.025, 518.131, 518.14, 518.17, 518.175, 518.552, 518A.39, 519.11, 257.56