Children\u27s Preference in Adjudicated Custody Decisions

Historically, courts usually paid little attention to the child\u27s wishes in deciding which parent should have custody upon divorce. Today, statutes in many states direct courts to consider the child\u27s preference, often as one among several factors that guide decisionmaking. With some exceptions, the law gives only general guidance and does not specify under what circumstances and to what extent the child\u27s desire should affect the decision. Little is known about how important this factor is, what variables influence the weight accorded the child\u27s preference, or how courts obtain and evaluate evidence about the child\u27s wishes. This Article began as a straightforward empirical study of the way in which courts in one state involve children in proceedings to decide their custody when their parents divorce. We were interested in how judges obtained information about children\u27s preferences as well as judicial perceptions about the children\u27s responses. We also wanted to learn about the extent to which judges considered the child\u27s preference in deciding custody suits and the factors that influenced this calculation