Iowa Age Child Can Choose Parent Live. September 22 2016 the lancaster law firm in many instances of child custody and changes in custody parents want to know what effect if any their child or children s preferences will have with the court or the judge. On a fairly regular basis i am asked by a divorced parent how old their child must be before they can choose which parent they want to live with.
Asking a child to choose between parents can be appropriate in limited circumstances but it can also be cruel and inappropriate in other situations. Iowa courts believe that asking a child to testify about custodial preferences in front of the parents may cause the child to testify out of fear or based on what the child believes the parents want. A child s insight into its life with each parent when intelligently and maturely expressed by the child is far more important than the child s age.
There is no rule or law on this.
No a child cannot decide where they live in iowa in the event of a custody dispute. On a fairly regular basis i am asked by a divorced parent how old their child must be before they can choose which parent they want to live with. The courts will always be involved in a case where the parents married or unmarried of a child cannot decide on a proper placement arrangement. At what age can a child decide which parent to live with.