Legal Question in Family Law in Illinois
Child Custody
My 14 yr old said she wanted to move to her dad's house with no explainable reason other than she didn't like fighting with her 8 yr old sister. About 2 months ago she said she didn't know if she wanted to go to her dad's for a wk at a time during the summer because of several reasons. My ex works two jobs and at one point his wife acted inappropriately (walking around the house naked, walking in on my child while showering, etc.). I believe that my child has been ''promised'' things if she moves in with them. Should I be worried that my ex will be able to get full custody of her?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Child Custody
Let me talk through both pure legal issues and then more practical stuff. On the legal front, custody is not being changed unless a court changes it. You could just agree to a change and have an order entered in court OR the father would need to bring a petition for change of custody in court. If you don't agree to it, it's not an easy case to bring and win. The father would need to show that there's been a substantial change in circumstances since custody was ordered and that it's in the best interests of your daughter to live with him.
Some more practical issues arise when children start to get into their early teens. Like, how is life going to be if your daughter's very unhappy living with you? Can you force her to stay with you?
Some of these practical things I don't know about with your situation. But I wouldn't just agree willy-nilly to a change. If I were advising the father I'd be clear that changing custody can be a difficult and costly legal proceeding.
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