child's view
Children can, and often do, make well informed intelligent decisions. Comparing a child not wanting to go to school to a child having a preference for which parent to live with is not a fair comparison. Firstly a judge would never agree with a child's wish to not get an education, but if a child had good reasons why they did not want to go to a particular school - such as a severe bulling issue, a judge might agree.
I the case of custody, courts are NOT required to abide by a child's request, only to listen to it. Children often have very good reasons why they prefer one parent to the other. "Brainwashing" certainly can occur, but that is why children need to be 12 years old and why courts usually have a professional prepare and deliver a reports on the children's view, parenting capacity, and alienation.
The real problem is that courts have a strong tendency to support mothers and not fathers.
Children can, and often do, make well informed intelligent decisions. Comparing a child not wanting to go to school to a child having a preference for which parent to live with is not a fair comparison. Firstly a judge would never agree with a child's wish to not get an education, but if a child had good reasons why they did not want to go to a particular school - such as a severe bulling issue, a judge might agree.
I the case of custody, courts are NOT required to abide by a child's request, only to listen to it. Children often have very good reasons why they prefer one parent to the other. "Brainwashing" certainly can occur, but that is why children need to be 12 years old and why courts usually have a professional prepare and deliver a reports on the children's view, parenting capacity, and alienation.
The real problem is that courts have a strong tendency to support mothers and not fathers.
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