Among the most interesting elements that a court considers when awarding child custody is the age and sex of the child. When children are very young, this factor is not so important. After all, a baby’s main interest is to be fed and kept reasonably clean. However, an older child’s preferences are more likely to be based on experience.

A young child’s preference may be to live with the parent who last bribed him. If Dad just bought you a new bike or a computer game, he may confuse his best interests with the momentary pleasure of receiving the gift. However, an older child may have genuine reasons for preferring one parent’s home over the other. The court’s job in this case is to decide whether the preference is based on genuine concerns or is a reflection of the child’s own agenda. For example, if your fourteen-year-old daughter wants to live with dad because she knows he’ll give her more access to her boyfriend, a judge won’t find her thoughts on the matter as convincing as a remark like, “Dad helps me with my homework.” who can get decent grades”.

other factors in the child’s emotional makeup may influence where he or she should live most of the time. If a boy is closer to dad and shares her interests, she had better have the male guidance that only a man can offer. A daughter can feel more secure having another woman help her navigate as a child approaching adulthood. Conversely, if the child is closer to the parent of the opposite sex, she might have a better chance of achieving a well-balanced adult life with that parent.

The maturity level of the child is also important to a judge exploring this factor. A 10-year-old who has seen his parents’ lives and can make legitimate observations about their qualities and actions will be much more credible to a divorce judge than a 15-year-old who is failing school and prefers to spend his time playing. computer games and hanging out with his friends.

In the end, the question of the sex and age of a child is not the only thing, or even the most important thing, that must be considered by a judge deciding the custody of a child. There are other aspects of a parent’s life that also indicate that the child would be better off in that parent’s custody. However, the older a child is, the more likely it is that his or her preferences and ability to better relate to a parent with whom he or she will make his or her primary home may influence his or her final placement of custody. Therefore, in the case of a particular child, her age and gender could be very relevant to where he ends up making his home.