Although the express wishes of a child are not controlling in custody decisions, they do constitute an important factor that must be carefully considered in determining the child’s best interest. In assessing the weight to be accorded the child’s preference, his or her intelligence and maturity is to be considered with increased weight being accorded the child’s preference as he or she grows older. The weight accorded such preferences is to be determined by a trial court. Where no reason or a very inadequate reason for the preference is proffered, a court gives no weight thereto. Moreover, when a child is particularly young, his or her expressed preference is often not the mature and intelligent decision that would sway a court. It is also true that a child’s stated preference may be sufficient to support a conclusion that a change of custody is warranted. Zimmerman v. Zimmerman, 11 Phila. 418, 420, 1984 Phila. Cty. Rptr. LEXIS 103, *1, 1984 WL 320924 (Pa. C.P. 1984)
The takeaway from this is that the older your child is, the more weight will be given to their desires about which parent should be given custody. However, the actual nature of their testimony is extremely important. They should be able to present clear, cogent, well-reasoned explanations for their opinions in order to provide the best and most weighty, effective arguments.