LA HB567

Division F of the Twenty-Third Judicial District Court (serving Ascension, Assumption, and St. James Parishes) will have jurisdiction limited exclusively to family matters beginning August 1, 2026

"Family matters" includes marriage and divorce actions, adoptions under the Civil Code and Children's Code, domestic abuse cases under R.S. 46:2132, and child support/paternity enforcement actions

Division F's jurisdiction extends to incidental family-related actions such as contempt, civil warrants, habeas corpus, curatorship, name changes, prenuptial agreements, and interspousal donations

The remaining five divisions of the court retain full jurisdiction and are not reduced by Division F's specialization; they may continue hearing family matters

When the Division F judge is recused or unavailable, family matters will be randomly assigned to another division of the court