Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia
teenager's rights
My ex-husband and I have been divorced for 9 years. I have full legal custody of our children (now 16 and 20 years of age.)Due to his unstable mental condition and inability to hold a job, I did not seek child support from him. (His only income is a small SSA disability check.)Weekly visitation was part of the divorce decree and I have seen that our daughters have made regular visits. Now, however, our 16 year old refuses to visit him anymore because his mental condition is too stressful for her to deal with and she feels that at 16 she has the right to refuse to see him. (Frankly, I agree with her but have kept myself out of this decision. Her older sister has stopped visiting him as well.) Can he somehow force
her to visit him?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: teenager's rights
As long as the court order provides for visitation, your daughter's father may be able to force visitation, and, indeed, can ask that if you refuse the visitation, that you be held in contempt of court.
Your older daughter is over 18, and is no longer affected by the visitation order.
In Virginia, whether or not a parent pays support is not taken into consideration in determining visitation.
You could see an attorney about filing a petition for a change in visitation. If you attempt to do so on your own with the intake officer of your local juvenile court, you might ask that a guardian ad litem be appointed to represent your daughter's interest.
As always, the best approach to going to court is with a lawyer who knows all the facts of your case.
Please Note:
The answer to the question above does not constitute the establishment of an attorney-client relationship. The information provided is general in nature, and is not intended to, nor is there any representation that it does, meet your legal needs. You are strongly encouraged to obtain the services of legal counsel to pursue any legal rights and remedies you may have.
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