6th Grader Sues Dad Over Grounding - And Wins

by Brett Singer (Subscribe to Brett Singer's posts)
Apr 8th 2009 6:00PM

Filed under: In The News, Weird But True

A Canadian court ruled in favor of a daughter who was suing her dad for grounding her. No. Really.

Most kids complain bitterly when they are grounded. Some will sneak out, while others will settle for slamming doors and announcing that they hate the person making the rules. But sometimes, kids get creative when they're punished: A 6th grader in Quebec sued her dad because she felt that his punishment was too harsh.

The 12-year-old girl's parents are divorced; in the spring of 2008, the girl's mom gave her permission to go on a class trip to Quebec City in June. But the middle-schooler lived with her father, and after she disobeyed daddy's orders to stay off the Internet, he told her she couldn't go. So what did she do? She took him to court. Of course.

A lower court ruled in favor of the girl, who went on the embattled class trip. Her father appealed -- on principle - -and amazingly, the girl won again. The father's attorney, Kim Beaudoin, says that her client is "flabbergasted" and they are considering another appeal, this time to Canada's Supreme Court. But, the attorney adds, the father has no regrets about the court proceedings. "Either way, he doesn't have authority over this child anymore. She sued him because she doesn't respect his rules," Beaudoin said. "It's very hard to raise a child who is the boss."

10 Dumbest Laws in America

Virginia
Children are not to go trick-or-treating on Halloween.

This and more dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Flickr

Nevada
It is illegal to drive a camel on the highway.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Flickr

Colorado: It is illegal to ride a horse while under the influence.

Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Florida: A special law prohibits unmarried women from parachuting on Sunday or she shall risk arrest, fine, and/or jailing.Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Wisconsin: Margarine may not be substituted for butter in restaurants unless it is requested by the customer.

Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Illinois: You may be arrested for vagrancy if you do not have at least one dollar bill on your person.

Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Georgia: Donkeys may not be kept in bathtubs.

Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Texas: A recently passed anticrime law requires criminals to give their victims 24 hours notice, either orally or in writing, and to explain the nature of the crime to be committed.

Image couresty of Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

This and more other dumb laws can be found at DumbLaws.com.

Now, I don't know a lot about the law, but I watch enough "Law & Order" to know that one thing that counts in the legal world is precedent. CBC News says that "the appeal court warned [that] the case should not be seen as an open invitation for children to take legal action every time they're grounded." But here's thing: If you don't want someone to consider using your ruling in other cases, maybe you shouldn't make the ruling. And what could the judge's reasoning possibly have been? Lucie Fortin, the Legal Aid lawyer who helped the girl take her pops to court, said that "The trip was very important" to the daughter. How is that a legal argument? Don't parents have the right to punish their children? (This is like making Consensual Living a legal requirement.)

Sadly, the case has destroyed the relationship between the girl and her father. "We went from a child who wanted to live with her father, and after all this has been done, they're not speaking anymore." The father's attorney adds, "We have a lot of work to re-establish a link between those two."

Who is right in this case?
The court - the dad made the wrong choice.	944 (1.8%)
The father - she deserved to be grounded.	25083 (48.8%)
The girl - kids have rights, too!	1154 (2.2%)
The whole thing is just ridiculous.	24236 (47.1%)

ReaderComments (Page 3 of 23)

Add Your Comments

4-09-2009 @ 12:51AM

niadee said...

Here, here! I couldn't have put it better myself! Action is taken against parents when their children don't comply with the law; and action's taken against parents when they try to instill discipline, obedience, and a responsibile attitude within their child/children.

The world is in a frightfully 'sad' and 'dangerous' state, mainly encouraged by those who has been given the authority to introduce legislations and manage the running of the country.

As a parent, the outcome of the case is devastating to witness, and I believe the girl in her immature state should be the responsibility of the state which supported her case against her father. She should promptly be placed in care! Unfortunately, she has challenged her father's authority and have 'won' temporarily. She and the courts will one day (I hope) understand the fullness of what she/they have done or created.

4-08-2009 @ 8:30PM

CLM said...

And your yelling, name-calling, and appalling spelling are good examples?

Mae said...

Is this serious? Obviously the girl did have a lot of assistance from that woman, while the grounding may have been harsh, she shouldn't have disobeyed her father, kids are getting soooo progressivly out line, it sad.

4-08-2009 @ 10:18PM

Trish said...

Excuse me, Grounding is HARSH,please.I commend her father with sticking to her punishment, my Step daughter gets by with everything,because her dad dishes out 'grounding' then turns around and lets her go to friends' houses. Most permissive parents don't care one way or the other,they just want everything to be 'friendly'.
God help us all , the ones who have to deal with these brats....

4-08-2009 @ 8:35PM

brian said...

the appeals court had the audacity to warn children "not to take this as an open invitation to take parents to court for punishments"....this so called appeals court must be run by 10 year olds who don't yet know the definition of the word hypocrite. i'm ecstatic that the dad is taking it to the supreme court...it'll be dismissed there or i'd like to live on another planet. why are so many people so naive and ignorant....it's just amazing,as i get older i find myself not wanting to even be around people anymore because of how stupid they are...you realize their stupidty as you age, that's for sure...

4-08-2009 @ 8:43PM

Linda said...

This is a lot of the reason why kids are so disrespectful and difficult to keep in line. The father may have been a little harsh (I don't suppose to know) but then there were probably times when he wasn't harsh enough and it all equals out in the end. If our word means nothing to our kids over the little stuff then we will have no chance with them over the big things, like driving, drinking, drugs. These judges did a great disservice to parents everywhere. And he did a great disservice to this child.

4-08-2009 @ 8:45PM

concernedparent said...

I would just like to say that I am "appauled" by the fact that parents have limited authority any more where our children are concerned especially when they can merely take us to court and WIN!!! And people ask what is happening to our kids these days? I have even heard remarks like "Those parents cannot control their kids", well......... this decision sure makes it difficult for parents to instill morals and ethics in our children when we are constantly being relieved from actually "Making our children responsible?" What in the WORLD are we actually teaching our kids and what the hell are we telling the parents????????????????????

concerned parent!!!!!!

4-09-2009 @ 7:19AM

Katy said...

Ok you guys are ALL crazy. I mean I get where you're comming from with the "learn a lesson" thing but COME ON. All she did was spend too much time on the internet and now shes not allowed to go on the class trip. thats redic. like seriously. im GLAD the girl won.

but really. the girl shouldve just worked it out privatly with her dad. like... do extra chores in order to be able to go.

idk.

Paula said...

Yes, she could have slammed doors, ran away from home or cussed her dad out but I've got to give her credit: She was smart enough to learn how to use the legal system to her advantage. How many 12yr. olds would attempt that let alone know how to start? She just might make a pretty good lawyer or child advovate someday.

4-08-2009 @ 10:43PM

revrm1 said...

Yes the girl did have the knowledge to do something like that but she should have never did it and the woman lawyer who helped carry it out should lose her right to be a lawyer. If my daughter had did that to me I would have kicked her out even tho she has always been my pride and joy. But to do something like that to me would tell me she doesn't care about me or my rules ( which I have to teach them respect for their elders and orther people ). I have another daughter and she is 15 and she gets grounded sometimes but she says she doesn't agree with what that girl did. And I say anybody that does agree with it I say You either haven't got children or the ones you do have are pregnant and drugies.

4-09-2009 @ 10:06AM

Me said...

Paula, REALLY. Are you REALLY THAT gullable and stupid that you THINK this 12 yr old knew how to do all this on her OWN?! How old are you? I just hope you don't have kids. MY GOD! And this is the example of many of the parents we have out there today, especially the mentality of many *moms*. I bet you are one of those people that believes every show on tv, including *Ghost Hunters*. Grow a brain! Did you ever THINK that the mother had some persuasion in this? A kid is not going to think this on their own without someone pushing the issue. How did this KID talk to a lawyer? Did she just hitchhike or ride her bike to the nearest attorney's office? Give me a friggin break! PLEASE don't have children, cause you have the mentality and brains of a 5 yr old!

4-09-2009 @ 12:03PM

Know what? I do have kids. Both are college graduates, one is an 8 year Army Veteren with 2 kids of his own. Neither use drugs and both have great jobs. Yes, they were grounded when necessary but there was always a compromise met and I never stopped them from going to a school function because of it. Had they chosen to obtain legal defense to prevent being grounded, I would applaud their resourcefulness. They know that in order to right what they believe is a wrong, they have to do it the legal way and not resort to violent outbursts or hate. It would have been a valuable lesson learned. Parents should teach, not dictate. My son always had 2 choices; my way or his way and there was always an explanation of the two. He was always smart enough to make the proper choice. I wonder if this Dad's punishment came with an explanation?

4-08-2009 @ 8:47PM

Mindy said...

This is outrageous. I have a 13-yr.-old daughter, am divorced and have definitely disagreed with my ex over what are appropriate consequences for our kids when their behavior is less than exemplary. He definitely tends to be tougher than I am - but we back each other up and we talk about it out of her earshot. I have to believe that if this family had open lines of communication between parents and with this child, this would not have happened. Perhaps the punishment was too harsh - we aren't given enough details here to really know, and not knowing the players, how can we tell? But if it was, that child should have asked her father what she could do to earn the trip back, asked her mother to mediate a conversation about it - something. I am utterly appalled that the court wasted taxpayers' money by hearing this in the first place - courts do NOT have a place in the parent/child relationship unless a child is being abused or neglected - and this clearly is not the case. Canada, not one of your proudest moments . . . .

4-08-2009 @ 8:51PM

Maxi said...

There is an old saying, a monkey knows which tree to climb!.

the child knows with whom she is dealing with, and she uses the Lawyer and the Judge. Well, as for me both the Lawyer and the Judge the would be her new parents let them deal with her.

4-08-2009 @ 8:53PM

gointhruit said...

This my fellow adults is what is happening with the kids these days. Although technology is a wonderful invention for us ADULTS, it has no place in the hands of teens. Kids do not know how to carry on a conversation, due to text messaging and facebook and instant messaging, which makes it impossible to talk with them. I have seen kids challenge their parents to hit them, they will call the police on them, PLEASE where the hell are they getting this from? I am with calm, the parent's should have NEVER let it get to that! BTW who drove her to the courthouse to file the paperwork?

4-08-2009 @ 8:52PM

Jessica said...

This is exactly why the youth of today is out of control, and has no respect for boundries, or other people. They feel they are intitled to do as they please, and the courts are now allowing it, taking all control away from the parents. This is crazy.
But let that girl or any kids today, pretending to be adults and get into some real trouble with their crappy, know it all, attitudes, and watch them cry, wanting coddled by their parents like the KIDS they really are.

4-08-2009 @ 8:57PM

Really? You really think Obama would be in favor of this kind of nonsense? Aside from the fact that you present yourself here as politically clueless, I can think of nothing that has ever been publicized about his as a father that would lead anyone, even those who dislike him, to think he'd approve of something like this. I've heard him talk about parenting, and he most definitely believes in consequences for misbehavior.

I find it amusing that you used this forum to air your political views, anyway. Oy.

4-08-2009 @ 8:55PM

Ryuksgirl said...

I guess its getting to the point where they have every thing, I know my friends kids cuss her out and say shes a whore and stuff. they get every thing they want. Shes afraid to do anything. But when Daddy comes home things are fine. And for that teen girl that was arrested from prom. If my kid ever tried wearing any thing like that, OMG she would never leave the house. That's just saying hey I'm hear come Frail me hard. What has people done with kids. they are just monsters, and having kids at 15? I'm 24 and have a 2 year old, my sisters friends are 5 years younger and have kids older than mine! Come the frail on, get some balls! teach our kids whats right and wrong. My kid is the best one out of 16. Never bites, yells back, hits, cusses, nothing wrong! Tho I do have problems getting her to clean up! LOL.

4-08-2009 @ 9:05PM

Mary said...

Oh goodness. I seriously blame the parents, 100%. They allowed her to get to a point where she started feeling like she ruled the roost. 1-Where was the father, or mother when she was going to file a lawsuit? 2-Where were they when she was seeing a lawyer to work on her case? 3-Where is she getting the money to pay for a lawyer? She disobeyed the rules, there must be consequences. Granted, perhaps the punishment could have been different, since she was already told she might go, by her mother. But this is a situation where it ends up being the parents that need to talk about it. They may be divorced but they still need to back each other up as parents trying to raise this child. I feel the mother backed her up on this choice to sue the father, I honestly feel like her mom had a lot to do with this whole mess. And I do feel like the father was wrong for trying to get so many appeals. Just let sleeping dogs lie.

Instead of trying to appeal this and go further in to, he should go get some counseling with his child.

4-08-2009 @ 9:34PM

teckid682 said...

I see what you mean madam. but, we are entitled to a lawyer as the same of the adult court system. there are not much differences how the case is solved. the child does not even need to file paper work. its as easy as calling a cop. He/she(cop) will generally call over a child services person, which will ask a few questions and talk to you about why do u want to sue. then from there on the paper work is filed for the child by the services worker on the behave of the child.

dont ask y i know this, i just do. =)

Previous 20 Comments 1 234 5 Next 20 Comments

Hot on HuffPost Parents:

6th Grader Sues Dad Over Grounding - And Wins

10 Dumbest Laws in America