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Chronological vs developmental age?

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  • Chronological vs developmental age?

    Just curious, my understanding is that a child can start saying which parent they live/visit with at age 12. What happens in the case of a special needs child where they are 12+ yrs old but developmentally one could argue that they are younger? How would one determine when a developmentally delayed child's wishes are honoured?
    Last edited by smileandwalkaway; 09-23-2014, 07:11 PM. Reason: Spelling

  • #2
    Originally posted by smileandwalkaway View Post
    Just curious, my understanding is that a child can start saying which parent they live/visit with at age 12. What happens in the case of a special needs child where they are 12+ yrs old but developmentally one could argue that they are younger? How would one determine when a developmentally delayed child's wishes are honoured?
    I don't believe there is any specific age at which children can decide which parent they live with. The age 12 gets bandied around a lot, but I think that's because this is roughly the age at which children's preferences will be taken into consideration by a judge if the parents can't decide about residency. "Taken into consideration" doesn't mean that the child gets to choose, just that the child is mature enough to have some input into the decision, which is made by the judge and/or parents. But there's no hard-and-fast rule. With a developmentally delayed child, I guess the question would be whether the child is cognitively mature enough to form preferences which are reasonable and valid (i.e. not based on which parent gives more toys or candy).

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    • #3
      I googled Canlii and this talks about the same situation. a 12 year old who preferred to be with her dad as he was moving to Nova Scotia (and more importantly, he had primary custody of her for the past 3 years).

      In the end, the judge awarded custody to the mother.

      Kent v. Jorzik

      So as everything else, a judge decides which factors are more important...in this case stability of environment vs preferences of child.

      Originally posted by smileandwalkaway View Post
      Just curious, my understanding is that a child can start saying which parent they live/visit with at age 12. What happens in the case of a special needs child where they are 12+ yrs old but developmentally one could argue that they are younger? How would one determine when a developmentally delayed child's wishes are honoured?

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      • #4
        Thank-you for sharing your opinions and the above cited Canilii case is a very interesting read.

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        • #5
          A child's wishes shall be heard. However, it is still what is deemed to be in child's best interests, which often is independent of child's wishes.

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