Q: My 15 yo son just said he wants me to get custudy of him. DNA is confirmed. Can he choose to live with me?
DNA was established when he was 5. His mother has never allowed me to have any contact with him.
A:
If you do not have custody through a court, then technically no your son cannot just choose to live with you without court action. What path you take next depends on what has already occurred. If you and your son's mother were never married and never went to court, then in Ohio she has all of the custody rights automatically as the biological mother and you would need to petition juvenile court for custody. If you were never married but went through a prior juvenile court proceeding that awarded the mother custody, then you will need to petition that same court for a change. If you were married and your son's custody was decided in a divorce, then you will need to petition that court for a change in their order to modify the rights.
With your son's age, a court will take his opinion into consideration and give it great weight, but it will not be the only factor they look at in determining what is in the child's best interest. I suggest speaking with a family law attorney to go over your options and determine what path to take.
A: If you were not married to the mother, and a court has not granted you any parental rights, then he cannot live with you. She has full legal custody, regardless of the DNA test. You must file with the court for parental rights, and the court will decide what is in his best interest. The court might consider his wishes, but if he just doesn't like his mother's rules, that probably is not sufficient. But the court could allow you limited parenting time with him. If you file for parental rights, she could file to have you start paying child support, if you are not paying it now. Use the Find a Lawyer tab to retain a local family law attorney.
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