Can My Child Tell the Judge?

Can my child tell the judge? I want my child to talk to the court. I want the judge to hear what my child has to say. My son wants to talk to the judge. We have heard this request many many times and the answer is almost always: no. In rare rare circumstances a Judge might want to interview a child but I have never had it happen. Why not? Because children do not belong in the middle of your divorce. And there are a multitude of other people who can speak on behalf of your child such as therapists, counselors, their school, doctors, and other professionals. Occasionally a guardian ad litem could be appointed and your child would have their own attorney for the divorce. Again, this is very rare.  Most issues surrounding your child’s best interests and welfare can be handled by their parents. If there is an abuse issue, there are ways to show this evidence. If there are drug and alcohol abuse issues, again you resources that can be used to give evidence to the judge. Your child would rather not see their dad or their mom…this may not be a good enough reason to stop or curtail parenting time. Sometimes a child might be told or discouraged from seeing one parent. So, if both parents are fit, the judge will hear the evidence and make their decision. But it is very doubtful your child will ever talk to the Judge.