Growing up, it was never a problem, but what if I’d said, “nah, I’m not going back”?
Custody was divided between two states (Pennsylvania and North Carolina), with parents expressing strong opposition. Enough that (most likely) either one would have flipped their lid and sought to nail the other with everything they had.
But by the age of 13, they could not have pushed me into a car if I didn’t want to go.
So, legally, what would have been possible for me and the parent I chose to cause the drama with? What if I had responded, “Nope, I’m not going back to Dad in Pennsylvania, screw this noise.”? Would that be anything for the family court? Would there be some kind of criminal issue there?
There are laws in some places that specify when a youngster can start making decisions for himself. The judge will probably have a private conversation with the youngster to ascertain whether or not this is only the child’s decision if the parent the child refuses to see wants to take it to court. The judge will permit the youngster to skip visits if they don’t feel that they are being persuaded to stay home.
… The judge decides on a case-by-case basis how old the youngster must be to make this decision. When they speak with the child in private, judges will let a 12- to 13-year-old make their own decisions as long as they don’t believe the child is being forced to stay home.
I absolutely despised going to my dad’s place and pleaded with my mom to spare me from it. However, if I failed to comply, he would resort to legal action and allege that she was not fulfilling her obligations under the custody agreement. When I was growing up, speaking up for myself was never something I was allowed to do. I stopped going the day I got my driver’s license and haven’t seen him since.