Can Children Choose Which Parent To Live With?

  I often hear the question "Can a child choose which parent to live with?" in the custody cases that I see on a regular basis. Unfortunately, in Colorado, the answer is, "yes." If the court feels like you are living in an environment that benefits one of the parents (i.e. physical abuse), then they will consider joint physical custody. There are several ways that a court can grant custody to one parent. In order for me to explain this process, I am going to have to get a bit technical. But just so you know, in Colorado, if a parent has both legal and physical custody, they are awarded sole custody. Now, you may be wondering what happens when one parent seeks physical custody and the other parent want the visitation rights. In a Colorado child custody situation, if you are seeking custody and your ex-spouse wants visitation, then joint legal custody is going to be awarded. This means that the child's best interests are served by both parents.