Q: Can my child still decide not to go to his fathers even with a court order now that he is 14?
In November 2023 I finally took my sons father to court for child support after receiving no help for 14years other than cash app of $20 every so often. We signed documents stating he would go to his fathers every other weekend and every other week during the summer. His father however changed the schedule stating he could not get him every other week during the summer and instead of what the court order states he has changed his weekends from getting him Friday and taking him to school on Monday to Friday and bringing him home on Sundays. His father is an alcoholic and has been locked up recently for trespassing after his girlfriends daughter ran away from home and he went into a house without permission. I really want to protect my child whom does not like going to his fathers house. I'm wondering what my options are at this point. He is not abiding by the court order.
A: The answer to your original question is no. Your 14 year old child cannot decide he is no longer going to go to visit his father. If you want to change the visitation and/or remove some visitation, you will have to take the father back to court. But if you do not send the child, you could be found in contempt of court. Because no, a child does not get to make those decisions, even at 14. The court takes into consideration where a child wants to live at the age of 14. But the child doesn't have the final decision, a judge does. The child can only make the court aware of their wishes and then a judge determines what's in the child's best interests.
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