Adjusting to shared custody can be a complicated process. Parents may struggle to find a workable dynamic with one another. They may also each experience fluctuations in their connection with their children.
Young children and even teenagers have intense emotional reactions to parental divorces. They may blame one parent for the change in family circumstances or may grow to dislike spending time at one parent’s home due to their living circumstances or new relationship.
Especially when children are older, they may insist that they do not intend to spend time with one parent due to their personal preferences. Can a child’s resistance to custody exchanges justify denied parenting time in Pennsylvania?
Parents must generally abide by an established order
While parents want to respect their children and give them a degree of autonomy during difficult times, they still have an obligation to adhere to any existing court orders regarding their parental rights and responsibilities. Even if a teenager has expressed frustration about the requirement to spend time with both of their parents, their parents should follow the custody schedule as established.
The courts generally want to see parents working with one another and following the custody order as established, as the terms it includes generally focus on the bests interests of the children. In cases where a teenager or older child refuses to see one parent, their wishes do not override the legal obligations imposed by the creation of the custody order.
Parents can work with one another to make minor changes to their schedule and encourage reconnection. However, one parent cannot unilaterally cancel or reduce the parenting time of the other based solely on the preferences of the children in the family.
If they use a child’s resistance as an excuse for violating the custody order, enforcement actions may be necessary. The courts can hold one parent in contempt for failing to uphold the custody order. A judge may also agree to modify the custody order. They can require reunification therapy or even diminish the parenting time of the parent who did not follow the custody order but instead deferred to the children’s preferences.
Reviewing a change in family dynamics and disruptions to the custody schedule with a skilled legal team can help parents understand their options. Those denied the parenting time awarded to them in a Pennsylvania custody order can potentially go back to court to assert their rights and renew their connection with their children.