Legal Question in Family Law in Oregon

Re: Child Custody

YOUR QUESTION:

I have a 15 year old niece that currently resides with her mother. * * * * She wishes to move in with her father. Is she of age to make that choice? If so, what steps should be taken?

ANSWER:

NO, she is not "of age." Under Oregon law, so long as a child remains a "child," that is, under age 18, the determination of legal custody remains ultimately a legal decision to be made and controlled by a judge. If parents agree, the judge will usually approve of the parents' agreement and render an order accordingly. If the parents are not in agreement, the judge will hold a hearing and listen to what both parents have to say, and then the judge will make the decision for them.

While the older the child is, the more "weight" that will be given to any parental preference the child might express regarding custody, it is never the child's decision alone.

BTW, what would happen if the parents were married and living with one another and the 15 y/o daughter did not want to live with either one of them? What would happen then? Would the child be deemed "of age" to make her own decision? This situation is really no different just because the parents are divorced and living apart from one another. In essence, decisions regarding custody are parental decisions to be made by the parents upon mutual agreement or with the help of the court if they disagree, not by the child.

If father wants to change legal custody (and mother does not agree), he would need to file a motion with the court seeking an order modifying the divorce decree so as to place the child in his legal custody. He would have to make a showing that there has been a substantial change in circumstances since the issue of custody was last before the court, a change of circumstances that adversely affects the welfare of the child, and that it is in the best interests of the child to now change custody, and that the advantages in doing so outweigh the disadvantages (if any) that might arise from such a change.

LDG