In a shared custody scenario, sometimes one parent can interfere in the relationship that the other parent has with the children. They may refuse to allow communications and may cancel parenting time or shorten the other parent’s time with the children despite what the custody order requires.
In such scenarios, parents dealing with attempts at alienation and parental interference can potentially ask the courts for custody enforcement. A judge might even modify the custody order when one parent refuses to follow the established order.
Occasionally, it isn’t a parent attempting to cancel visitation or overnight parenting sessions that interferes with parenting time. Instead, it might be a preteen or teenager refusing to go. Can a child refuse to see one parent because of temporary relationship issues?
Children do not set custody terms
Children lack the lived experience and cognitive abilities of adults. They struggle to consider long-term consequences and may not always make decisions that are in their own best interests. Their emotions can be intense, and they can lash out at the people closest to them.
To protect children and young adults from the harm they could potentially cause themselves, the law empowers parents to make decisions on behalf of children. Parents generally have authority over their children until they turn 18. The children must abide by the instructions and rules of the parents. Both parents should cooperate and abide by the terms outlined in the custody order, which includes requiring that the children spend time with the other parent.
Neither parent should encourage the children to stay home or try to avoid their parenting time with their other parents. State guidelines on parental rights and responsibilities make it very clear that neither one parent’s opposition to the children spending time with the other nor a child’s aversion to time with the other parent justifies a cancellation of court-ordered parenting time. Even during custody litigation, a child’s preferences are only one of many considerations a judge takes under advisement.
Parents dealing with a child who refuses to see them may need help enforcing or modifying their custody orders. Documenting custody disputes and taking action in family court can help parents effectively assert their parental rights.