USA – MISSOURI Law and Practice Contributed by: Aaron Bundy, Bundy
3.3 Other Matters Missouri courts have the power to issue orders con ‑ cerning the welfare and upbringing of a child if the par ‑ ents do not agree. Courts have recognised parental alienation as a factor in making child custody orders. An attempt by a parent to alienate a child from the other parent is a changed condition and can form the basis for a modification of custody ( Eatherton v Eath - erton , 725 SW 2d 125, 128 (Mo App 1987)). As the mandatory factors for a child custody decision include the child’s input, the court may hear from a child in a variety of formats. The judge may interview the child in chambers (Section 452.385 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri). If the judge determines that the child is a competent witness, a parent may call a child as a witness to testify in the courtroom. A guardian ad litem may also be appointed in cases involving child custody and will interview all persons with knowledge about the child’s preference(s), including the child. 3.4 ADR in Child Law Matters See 2.9 ADR in Financial Matters . 3.5 Media Access and Transparency in Children Proceedings See 2.8 Media Access and Transparency in Financial Proceedings .
Child support is based on established guidelines that are presumptive. Deviation from the application of the child support guidelines requires judicial approval and specific findings detailing the factors warranting the deviation. Child support obligations terminate as a matter of law when the child: • dies; • marries; • enters active duty in the military; • becomes self-supporting, provided that the custo ‑ dial parent has relinquished the child from parental control by express or implied consent; • reaches the age of 18, unless the provisions of subsection 4 or 5 of Section 452.340 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri apply; or • reaches the age of 21, unless the provisions of the child support order specifically extend the parental support order past the child’s 21st birthday for rea ‑ sons provided by subsection 4 of Section 452.340 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. If the child is physically or mentally incapable of sup ‑ porting themselves and insolvent and unmarried, the court may extend the parental support obligation past the child’s 18th birthday. If – when a child reaches the age of 18 – the child is enrolled in and attend ‑ ing a secondary school programme of instruction, the support obligation shall continue if the child contin ‑ ues to attend and progresses towards completion of said programme, until the child completes such pro ‑ gramme or reaches the age of 21 (whichever occurs first). A custodian of a minor child may apply for child support. A minor child may not apply for child support themselves.
344 CHAMBERS.COM
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