GA Custody Laws

[JETX]

i was refurring to calling the clerk of court for numbers to legal aid maybe??

Gee, nice spin!! Your post made NO mention of that intent.... and why do you think that the court would have the number for 'legal aid'?? The phone company publishes this book every year called a 'phone directory' that has the number for legal aid and LOTS of other numbers also!!

seeing as how she did say her mother couldn't afford an attorney.

And I guess that makes her qualified for legal aid in your mind, huh????

and i KNOW that an attorney will give a free consultation bc i myself got one before i went back to court for custody the second time.

Wonderful. Then why didn't you just provide the name and number of YOUR 'freebie' attorney in your post??

Sorry to offend you with my ignorance as so many of us seem to do to you.

Sometimes it's astounding the ignorance that the rest of us have to tolerate on the forum......

 

[Whyte Noise]

You know what? No one said that the child could just "change her mind" on her own and it would all be hunky-dory, so I don't even know where in the hell that idea came from.

Of course the mother will have to change the custody order. it's called.... wait for it.... a modification of the custody order... DUH. However, at 16, the child CAN state who she prefers to live with during the modification hearing, and unless the mother is ruled to be unfit, then the judge is bound, by LAW, to give the child's WISHES the controlling factor in his/her decision and modify the court order to reflect that the mother now has custody.

And tell me where I was wrong when I said O.C.G.A. 19-9 is the Chapter that deals with child custody? I mean, that's the text of my post that was quoted, that you said was "wrong".

I doubt that ANY attorney would give a free consultation on the issue of changing an existing court order. Simply, nothing in it for him/her.

So... attorney's don't give free consults for a custody modification case? Since when? After all... "changing an existing court order" IS still called a "Modification".... right? I know it still was last month when I did mine... It changed the first court order, and it was called a modification.

Sorry, but you are wrong. The child can choose parents BEFORE an order is made. Once made, the only way to change the order is to return to court. See my previous post.

Exactly. Who said the order could be changed arbitrarily without returning to court? Not me. Mom would have to file for a custody modification, yes. However, once filed, and on the docket, and the parties are in the courtroom, the child can then say where she wants to live. The statutes and laws apply to modifications, just as they do to initial rulings. Just because the child wasn't 14 at the time the current order was made and couldn't say where she wanted to live, doesn't negate the fact that she is over 14 now, and CAN state her wishes and them be the controlling factor. It jsut has to be done in front of a judge, and him order it.

 

[tigger2two]

The clerk of court does have these numbers. I can give you the name and number of the freebie attorney consultation that i found but it really wouldn't do her much good in another state. Now would it?? And most ppl that say they can't afford an attorney when it comes to their children, really can't. So even if she doesn't qualify for legal aid why is it wrong for me to offer her advise to pursue it? This is a legal forum isn't it? Giving legal advise or means of getting legal advise is what this site is for, is it not?

And you are correct ignorance is tolerated alot on this site. Not just from ignorant ppl. from a legal stand point.but also from ppl who have nothing better to do then make themselves fell big and bad by demeaning others.

And for me to continue on with this argueement would be ignorant as it does not pretain to the OP anymore. Sorry again that my opinion and yours weren't exactly the same.

 

[JETX]

Trying to explain the law to you two is like trying to talk to rocks and expecting some cognizant thought from them.
Simply, what might have happened in YOUR cases has NO relevance to this one. And the fact that your court clerk has or doesn't have the number for legal aid, also doesn't apply.

 

[Whyte Noise]

Why is that JET?

None of this happened in MY case. However, my decree is a Georgia decree and before modifying it here in Missouri, I consulted with many a Georgia attorney, and spent countless hours over the past 2 years researching Georgia law.

At the age of 14, a child, in Georgia, most certainly decide which parent they want to live with. YES... there has to be a custody modification, and the judge has to sign it. BUT, the fact is... the child can choose which parent to live with and the judge shall grant the child's wishes unless the chosen parent is proven unfit.

I agreed with you saying that a judge has to sign it. What I didn't agree with was the fact that you said a child can't choose after an order has been entered when, in fact, they can in Georgia. Through a custody modification initiated by the parent.

 

[adonahee]

Tigger2, stop while you're trailing miserably behind

You see, we understand your feeble and good-hearted attempt. But you don't even know enough to know that you don't know anything. That's what the conversation was about.

 

[JETX]

At the age of 14, a child, in Georgia, most certainly decide which parent they want to live with. YES... there has to be a custody modification, and the judge has to sign it. BUT, the fact is... the child can choose which parent to live with and the judge shall grant the child's wishes unless the chosen parent is proven unfit.

Yes, but that is NOT the issue!! How many times do I have to try to explain that what happened to you or anyone else has NO bearing on the specifics of this thread???

The writer asked, "With me being 16, I should be able to choose which parent I want to live with, correct?"
The answer to that is..... NO! Just as I said. Then the thread 'went downhill fast' when TWO people misread the statute and said that a 14 year old can decide... when the fact is she CAN'T (at least without a "Motion to Modify".... which happens to be the CORRECT terminology!!).
Then, it went further downhill when people went off on a tangent of calling the clerk, talking to the judge, etc. when NONE of that has any relevance to the true basic question asked!!
And now we are finally at the 'bottom of the hill', with people trying to justify their obviously incorrect posts.

Bottom line..... this writer CANNOT simply chose to move to live with her mother!!! And that is the ONLY relevant issue in this post!!

I agreed with you saying that a judge has to sign it. What I didn't agree with was the fact that you said a child can't choose after an order has been entered when, in fact, they can in Georgia. Through a custody modification initiated by the parent.

Agreed, but as noted above and in my post, that is NOT the issue..... or the question asked. Modification and a courts consideration of the childs parental wishes only became an issue in this thread due to confusion and wrong answers by some....... and is NOT in the writers post.

 

[Whyte Noise]

Yes, but that is NOT the issue!! How many times do I have to try to explain that what happened to you or anyone else has NO bearing on the specifics of this thread???

And how many times do I have to say that none of this happened to me??

The writer asked, "With me being 16, I should be able to choose which parent I want to live with, correct?"
The answer to that is..... NO! Just as I said.

Wrong, the answer to that is YES. She CAN choose. IN FRONT OF THE JUDGE.

Then the thread 'went downhill fast' when TWO people misread the statute and said that a 14 year old can decide... when the fact is she CAN'T (at least without a "Motion to Modify".... which happens to be the CORRECT terminology!!).

EXACTLY!! And that was told to the poster! That there would have to be a modification done! Sheesh, talk about mis-reading....

Then, it went further downhill when people went off on a tangent of calling the clerk, talking to the judge, etc. when NONE of that has any relevance to the true basic question asked!!
And now we are finally at the 'bottom of the hill', with people trying to justify their obviously incorrect posts.

My post was NOT incorrect. Yes, the poster CAN choose which parent to live with, and it DOES have to be done through the courts. No one, except for YOU, took my post to mean that she could just say one day, "I'm gonna go live with mom!" and that's all it would take. The statute even mentions the judge. Hell, that would tell you that it has to go in front of the court.

Bottom line..... this writer CANNOT simply chose to move to live with her mother!!! And that is the ONLY relevant issue in this post!!

No, she can't just choose to move in with mom, and that's not what anyone TOLD her either. I quoted the statute to her. At the age of 14 she can decide who to live with, her mother has to file to modify the existing order, and she will have to tell the judge who she wants to live with. She can't live with mom until then.

Agreed, but as noted above and in my post, that is NOT the issue..... or the question asked. Modification and a courts consideration of the childs parental wishes only became an issue in this thread due to confusion and wrong answers by some....... and is NOT in the writers post.

Modification and the child's wishes became an issue because that's the proper channel that the poster's mother would have to take. File the modification (and believe it or not, I DO know what the proper terminology is as I've used it in motions myself), she makes her wishes known to the judge. People ask about TPR and they're asked if paternity has been established yet. Why? Because that's the first thing that has to be done. They ask about custody and CS and again, paternity is the first issue addressed because it's the place to start even though paternity may not have been addressed in the writer's first post. Modification was addressed (by ME at least) because that's the proper place to start in the OP's case.

Nothing I've told her is wrong JET. Yes, she does have the right to choose... in front of a judge. No, she can't just choose to move into mom's house and it be legal. Yes, a modification is what is needed. I've said all those things. They address the OP's situation and the steps that need to be done.

Have a good night.

 

[JETX]

Everyone say goodbye to the rock......

 

[LdiJ]

Yes, but that is NOT the issue!! How many times do I have to try to explain that what happened to you or anyone else has NO bearing on the specifics of this thread???

The writer asked, "With me being 16, I should be able to choose which parent I want to live with, correct?"
The answer to that is..... NO! Just as I said. Then the thread 'went downhill fast' when TWO people misread the statute and said that a 14 year old can decide... when the fact is she CAN'T (at least without a "Motion to Modify".... which happens to be the CORRECT terminology!!).
Then, it went further downhill when people went off on a tangent of calling the clerk, talking to the judge, etc. when NONE of that has any relevance to the true basic question asked!!
And now we are finally at the 'bottom of the hill', with people trying to justify their obviously incorrect posts.

Bottom line..... this writer CANNOT simply chose to move to live with her mother!!! And that is the ONLY relevant issue in this post!!



Agreed, but as noted above and in my post, that is NOT the issue..... or the question asked. Modification and a courts consideration of the childs parental wishes only became an issue in this thread due to confusion and wrong answers by some....... and is NOT in the writers post.

Honestly, YOU are the one who has misread the statute. Georgia's statute is well known in the legal community and the fact that a child gets to choose at 14 (whether its an original case or a modification) has been verified over and over again by numerous attorneys. So yes, if the child's mother files a motion to modify custody, and the child's mother is not legally unfit, then the child's wishes will be the controlling factor in the case. That is the unmitigated truth.

 

[JETX]

Honestly, YOU are the one who has misread the statute.

Simple response for a simpleton.... prove it!!

The statute is clear. Your response is not.

 

[LdiJ]

Simple response for a simpleton.... prove it!!

The statute is clear. Your response is not.

Wow, you can't stand to be wrong can you?

 

[JETX]

Wow, you can't stand to be wrong can you?

Gee, guess that means you can't PROVE it, huh??

 

[LdiJ]

Gee, guess that means you can't PROVE it, huh??

In my opinion its already been proven by the statute.

 

[JETX]

So, you can't prove your claim.
As we say..... game, set and match. Thank you.