In Missouri, can a 17 year old choose to live with their dad instead of their mother?

[Brendan C]

If they can, would the responsibility of paying for college still be 50-50?
Would child support be switched to the mother as well?

[tickerlock]

You bet you can, at the age of 14 you can. And yes, the CS would be switched to the one no longer with custody. However, paying for college? Highly unlikely. Most custody ends at the age of 18.

[Tessa]

It depends on the status and relationship of your parents. If they're divorced, and the custody of you is legally in your mother's hands, she can take legal action, which is taxing, expensive, and leaves a lot of resentment on every angle. If your parents are just separated, with no custody agreement hammered out, then it depends on if your parents acquiesce and how much you value your mother.

And I highly, highly stress the fact YOU NEED TO BE SURE. Your opinion of each of your parents can change in an instant. What if your father isn't who you thought he was, or - if you and your mother have a bad relationship - the two of you talk it out? What if you want to live with your mother again? If your father's spent money on lawyers trying to bring and keep you in his house, you'll feel a responsibility to stay there. And you may not want to. Then again, if you're leaving for college soon, you shouldn't be living long at either place. But I warn you, drama can make a year seem like a decade.

As for the paying of college, and the child support, that's up to the judge. Child support would most likely be switched - but I'm definitely no lawyer, so you should probably seek a more qualified source. See about a consultation with a lawyer.

I think you're old enough that a judge would listen to your input on where you'd like to live. But I say again, I'm no lawyer.

[Amateurmap785]

No, yes, and yes. I'm in KCMO.
http://squidoo.com/Custody-TheChildsChoice

Your father would need to file for custody.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/Mo.DadsHouseEdCtr/
http://dads-house.org/EducationalManual

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http://www.crckids.org/
For 22 years, I have volunteered my time working with divorced/single fathers dealing in family law issues, such as child support, teaching them about what the states are not telling support obligors.
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