Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Re: Residential Custody of 15 yr old ,but both parents have Joint Custody

The parent to whom the court gave custody retains the status of legal custodian until it is legally changed--that is, by court order. However, the parent with whom the child has been actually living could petition the court for a change of custody due to the events of the past year. If the legal custodian goes to court to try and force the child to return, I would advise the other parent to file a counter-petition. The older the child, the more likely his/her wishes as to where he/she wants to live will be taken into consideration.

Re: Residential Custody of 15 yr old ,but both parents have Joint Custody

The court order would still be enforceable, even though the child had spent a year with the other parent. But The other parent could, and maybe should, petition the court for a change of custody. If the child is fifteen, the child is old enough to express to the judge his/her preference, and in addition the judge would consider the reason why the parent with custody sent the child to the other parent for a year. Couldn't he/she cope with the child at that time?

Or was it because the child wished to go? The judge will also consider evidence of how well the child has been doing during the year. If the child wants to stay where he is, and he is doing well, a change in custody will very likely be ordered.

Re: Residential Custody of 15 yr old ,but both parents have Joint Custody

Yes, the parent with court ordered custody has the power to force the return of the child. However, the other parent could petition the court for a change in custody since the child has lived with that parent for the last year. Given that the child is now 15 years old, the court could take the child's preference into account. Also please be very careful with actions which are not consistent with an existing court order. The parent with the court ordered custody likely received child support as well. One could argue that those payments continued to be required even though the child was not living in the custodial parent's home. Therefore the custodial parent could sue for the payments which were required for the last year even if you two agreed that the payments weren't necessary. If you have any questions please feel free to call my office at 301-652-0663.