Problem/Objective: To assess how family courts are considering taking action in child custody disputes where one of the parents smokes around the child.

Methods: To analyze reported court decisions (since 1987, at least 55 such cases in 26 states) in which a child's exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a key factor in a dispute involving custody of that child.

Results: Family courts are becoming increasingly aware of the hazards that SHS exposure inflicts on children and willing to intervene to protect children from that exposure.

Conclusions: Over the past twenty years in the United States, family courts have considered child custody disputes where a child's exposure to the secondhand smoke while in the presence of one of the parents has become a significant issue. Courts have become increasingly willing to intervene on behalf of the best interest of the child to order smoking bans while a smoking parent shares the same environment as the child. In some instances, smoking around the child has become the determinant factor in the court's award of custody of the child. The presenter will examine the history of child custody cases where secondhand smoke has been a key issue and will emphasize recent court decisions that have forcefully described the special hazards to the health of children that are caused by exposure to secondhand smoke. At the conclusion of the session, the participant can determine how court interventions in child custody disputes where exposure to secondhand smoke is a key issue have helped to protect children.