1. (1) In a child custody proceeding that requires the testimony of a qualified expert witness, the petitioning or filing party shall seek a qualified expert witness from the Indian child's tribe and may, when appropriate, contact the federal bureau of Indian affairs and request that the tribe or bureau identify one or more individuals who meet the criteria described in subsection (3) or (4) of this section and make a record of that contact either in writing or orally on the record.

2. (2) At a hearing pursuant to section 19-1.2-123 or 19-1.2-125, if the court has found that there is reason to know that a child is an Indian child, at least one expert witness must be qualified to testify regarding:

   1. (a) Whether the continued custody of the Indian child by the Indian child's parent or Indian custodian is likely to result in serious emotional or physical damage to the Indian child; and
   2. (b) The prevailing social and cultural standards and child-rearing practices of the Indian child's tribe.
3. (3) For the purposes of this section, a qualified expert witness is not required to have knowledge of social and cultural standards of the Indian child's tribe only if such knowledge is plainly irrelevant to the particular circumstances at issue in the proceeding. The Indian child's tribe may designate an individual as being qualified to testify to the prevailing social and cultural standards of the Indian child's tribe.

4. (4) If the Indian child's tribe has not identified a qualified expert witness, the following individuals, in order of priority, may testify as a qualified expert witness:

   1. (a) A member of the Indian child's tribe or another individual who is recognized by the tribe as knowledgeable about tribal customs regarding family organization and child-rearing practices;
   2. (b) An individual who has substantial experience in the delivery of child and family services to Indians and extensive knowledge of prevailing social and cultural standards and child-rearing practices in the Indian child's tribe; or
   3. (c) An individual who has substantial experience in the delivery of child and family services to Indians and extensive knowledge of prevailing social and cultural standards and child-rearing practices in Indian tribes with cultural similarities to the Indian child's tribe.
5. (5) An Indian child's tribe must be provided the opportunity to question the qualified expert witness in all hearings involving the Indian child, regardless of whether the Indian child's tribe has intervened pursuant to section 19-1.2-113.
6. (6) For the purposes of this section, a petitioning or filing party or an employee of the petitioning or filing party may not serve as a qualified expert witness.

Source: L. 2025: Entire article added, (HB 25-1204), ch. 338, p. 1802, § 2, effective August 6.