17 years old and want custody changed

[drgnfly799]

Right now my Dad's custody agreement is 50/50. We stay Fri till Fri at Dad's and then Mom's the next week. This has worked great because both parties live close enough to one another to make this work. And usually if anthing comes up swapping time hasn't been too big of a deal.

Last Oct. I started having problems with some of the people I thought were my friends at school.  I decided I wanted to go to the school closer to momDad's and he finally said yes at the end of the first semister so I started my secound semister there.  My Mom got mad at me and told me that if I wanted to go to that school then I would have to live with my Dad.

Which is what I did, and I haves loved it!  Summer came and I started staying with my Mom  EveryOther week again but I told her that I wanted to live with my Dad when school starts back
Now Mom doesn't want to sign any papers.

I am the one that went to the lawyer to draw up the papers. I have set down with my Mom to try and make her understand and she doesn't want to listen.  She says that if she signs my Dad will try to change cihld support, even though he promised me he wouldn't and I believe him.

I really don't want to have to go to court over this but I have already told my Mom that I have saved enough money to do that if I have to.  She believes that my Dad and SM are behind this and not me.


#1 -   I'm 17 (9 months til 18) is there anything she can really do to keep me from living with my dad?

#2  -  What if I do it anyway?  What can happen?

Thank you for your help!

[drgnfly799]

  sorry - forgot to say I'm in Alabama (nm)

[socrateaser]

>#1 -   I'm 17 (9 months til 18) is there anything she can
>really do to keep me from living with my dad?

No. The court would never force you to live with your Mom at this point, because the judge knows, that you could just get up and go back to your Dad's, so the order would be unenforceable.

>#2  -  What if I do it anyway?  What can happen?

Court could make a specific order instructing you to stay at your Mom's, and failure would mean a trip to juvenile hall, or to a foster home in some other part of the city.

That's a worst case scenaro, which, while legally possible, is inconceivable in practice. If you were 13, maybe, but not at 17 3/12.

The only reason to file a motion to legally change the court order so as to recognize father's primary custodial responsibility, is to have child support changed.

But, if that's not interesting to your father, then spending money in court just for a legal change is probably a waste of time.

[drgnfly799]

So even if my mom doesn't sign the new agreement, I can live wit my dad?

I don't want to get my dad in trouble though.  She is blaming him and saying she'll file contempt charges or something against him.

Can she do that?

[socrateaser]

>So even if my mom doesn't sign the new agreement, I can live
>wit my dad?
>
>I don't want to get my dad in trouble though.  She is blaming
>him and saying she'll file contempt charges or something
>against him.
>
>Can she do that?

Sure, she can, but you can testify that you refuse to live with your Mom, and that your Dad is simply letting you live there because he cannot force you to keep going back to your Mom's when you won't stay there.

The best solution, however, is to simply tell your Mom that you want her to stipulate to an agreed order granting your Dad permission to exercise primary physical custody for the remainder of your minority, and that if she won't, then you will ask your Dad to file for primary custody, and you will testify that you want to live with your Dad, and your Mom will lose, and that will be the end of the matter.

So, your Mom really shouldn't waste her money in a losing cause.

[drgnfly799]

I have tried talking to my Mom.  I don't think she really beieves that I am going through it.  I have explained to her that by doing it this way we both save money.  (I am paying for my side of the legal even though my Dad offered)  She doesn't care.  

I want to go ahead and file to make it legal.  But I also want to start living with my Dad now!  I am thinking about doing both.

Thank you for your thoughts!