I’m the father of a 15-year-old who wants to stay at my house for the school year because he feels unsupported at his mom’s house and has other problems there. We have a 50/50 custody agreement but usually switch custody on Fridays instead of Saturdays.
My question is: Do I have to make my son go to his mom’s if he doesn’t want to? What can she do if we don’t follow the custody plan? Is the current plan still valid even though we’ve changed the schedule? I don’t want to upset her, but her time with him will be less if he stays with me. My therapist said no judge would force a teen to stay somewhere they don’t want to, but advised getting legal advice. Any thoughts before I spend money on a lawyer?
Hi,
Yes, you can usually request a change to your custody arrangement if your teen wants to live with you. However, the court will decide based on what it believes is in the child’s best interest.
The child’s age and maturity, as older kids’ wishes are taken more seriously. The reasons for wanting a change, like a better school or more friends, could make the court more likely to agree. How stable and supportive the new home is will also be checked. Finally, the court will think about how the change might impact the other parent and their relationship with the child.
It’s important to note that simply expressing a preference is not enough. You’ll likely need to provide evidence to support your teen’s desire to change custody