June 20th, 2008
When you were a kid were you ever grounded? Did you ever think of fighting the punishment by taking your folks to court?
That’s what a Quebec 12-year-old did recently. It sounds something straight out of TV or a movie, right? And the crazy thing is … she won!
While the details in various media reports varied slightly, the basics are:
The girl’s divorced father had asked her to stay off the Net. She disobeyed and chatted on a friend’s computer on sites that her Pops had blocked at home. As well, she posted photos online her dad felt were not appropriate. So, her dad grounded her from attending a school trip. Case closed, right?
Not even close! The girl went back to live with her mom, who said she could go on the trip. However, reportedly the school needed signatures from both parents for the girl to attend and the dad was not relenting. So, the tween sued him with the help of a public defender.
Judge Suzanne Tessier ruled the man could not ground his daughter because she was living with her mom. She also deemed his proposed punishment to be excessive. The girl ended up going on her trip, which was a jaunt through Quebec to celebrate Grade 6 graduation.
Even though the trip has been completed, the man’s lawyer is appealing the decision. The case raises many, many questions. One of the big ones is how can the father and girl have a relationship after she sued him? Every time he makes a decision she doesn’t like he has to live with “I can take you to court. Remember last time, when I won?”
What does this mean for parent and child relationships in Canada? Can parents no longer use their best judgment and punish their children as they see fit (within reason, of course)?
What does this mean to divorced parents? Many children play their parents against each other and this only gives them more fuel!
We live in interesting times …
Robin