Legal Question in Family Law in California

On a custody modification hearing, the judge is very unlikely to hear from any witnesses except maybe the parents. Before you get to the judge, however, you will have to talk to a Family Court Services mediator. At 16-1/2 your son is definitely old enough to talk to the mediator and express his views in that forum. Also, if you do not like the outcome of the hearing, you can request a "long cause" hearing. The outcome of the hearing will stand until the long-cause hearing, but at the long cause you will be allowed to present witnesses. And yes, nothing in custody papers cannot be modified on a showing of changed circumstances, and the simple passage of time and a child growing up can be changed circumstances.

The court must make a decision and order in the "best interest" of the child. One consideration is the wishes of the child. The older the child, the more weight given to his wishes. Your child is 16 1/2, one 1 1/2 years from being an adult. You apparently live in San Diego County and if your case is in San Diego then you will go to Family Court Services (FCS) for mediation. You should tell the mediator at FCS what your son's desires are and suggest that they talk to him. I believe that the court must hear the wishes of the child when the child is a teenager and have been successful arguing that the court cannot make a ruling until hearing from the child, generally be a mediators interview. An attorney will increase you chances of prevailing. Good Luck, Pat McCrary

The judge will likely order the child and father to go to counselling to try to determine why the child wants reduced time and attempt to save the relationship. Contact me directly.