Do the wishes of a child have any influence in custody decisions?

Yes, they do. Most children will have a court appointed attorney either paid by the parties, or paid by the court to represent their rights. Courts will pay some little bit of attention to children that are under the age of eight. They’ll interview them and find out what they think in a very subtle way, but they will not give credence to that child’s specific request. Children who are eight to 12 or 13 years old the court will pay more attention to. If a child is 12 or 13 years old, and in particular if they’re vocal, especially if they’re able to vote with their feet, the court will pay very hard attention to what children say.