If you are going through a divorce or have gone through a divorce that involves children, you will enter into a custody or time-sharing arrangement with your child’s other parent. If the divorce hasn’t occurred yet, and your child has expressed a preference to live with one parent, the court may or may not take that preference into consideration when deciding custody.
In Florida, there is no set age at which a child can choose which parent to live with. The judge would prefer that parents work that decision out between themselves. If the parents cannot or will not come to an agreed upon custody arrangement, the court will set forth the terms of custody. There are many factors that come into a custody decision.
Some courts will allow a child’s preference to be considered, but that is only one factor of many factors to be looked at, and the age and maturity of the child will be taken into consideration.
If the divorce has already been finalized and the custody arrangement is in place, and a child later expresses a preference to live with or spend more time with the other parent, the parents have two options. The first is to mutually agree to revise the custody arrangement, and file it with the court. If they can’t come to an agreement, they can go back to court to rehash the terms of the custody agreement. It’s generally best for all parties involved if the parents can work out a mutually agreeable solution.
In some cases, it may be best to give in to a child’s desire to spend more time with the other parent. However, in some situations the child may wish to move because he or she wishes to live with a less strict, more indulgent parent. Each child custody situation is different, depending on the living situations of the parents and the needs and personalities of the children.