How old must I be to decide what parent I want to live with?

I am almost 16, my father said when I am , I can decide who I want to live with. My mother said it's 18, and I can't seem to find the answer. So, please help me. Thank you!How old must I be to decide what parent I want to live with?
The age at which the Judge will be willing to listen to you varies from state to state, and sometimes from judge to judge within a state. Even in those states where a child will be allowed to state her preference, that is only one bit of information the judge is to consider, along with how mature the child's reasons are. The judge also may consider which parent appears to be the better parent, the quality of the school the child will attend, whether a change of custody will cause other difficulties, etc.





In the final analysis the person who decides, if your parents can not agree, is the judge until you reach your state's age of majority, usually 18 years.How old must I be to decide what parent I want to live with?
depends on the state you are in...in Wis. I believe it's 12 that you can go to the judge, and he'll take your opinion into consideration
in ga and fla it's 14
I am not a lawyer or a judge, but I would think at 16, the courts would let you decide who you can live with. If you want to live with your dad, he will probably need to petition the court for custody, but I would think it would go smoothly. Good luck!
Your mom is lying to you. I'm sure she doesn't mean to hurt you. She only wants the best for you and may feel that living with your father is not going to be a good idea.


The age at which you can decide varies from state to state and it also depends on the situation.


If you realy feel strongly about living with your father you need to talk to him about it. He is the one that has to file a petition to children and youth services. If he doesn't or won't then it may be a sign that he realy does not want you living with him.


Also, make sure you have a heart to heart with mom.


Ask her why she doesn't want to let you go. Tell her you love her you just want to spend time with dad. Tell her you'll visit every chance you get.


Mom may even let you stay with dad without going through court.


In fact it may even be a good idea to ask mom if you could stay with dad on a trial basis. Maybe a month or two to see if that is realy what you want. Who knows, you may figure out that living with dad is not a good idea after all.


Keep in mind that the grass is not always greener on the other side!
At 14 most judges will allow the child to have a say about who they live with.
I think its you parents digression with the judges approval. I think the Judge will listen to you when they make their decision. When you reach anywhere above 9 you can tell the judge who you would prefer to live with and then they will decide. But you can't just decide on your own until you are 18