Click here to visit the new home of ParentDish!

Hot on HuffPost Parents:

 

6th Grader Sues Dad Over Grounding - And Wins

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

448Comments

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%)

Tags: anne murray, AnneMurray, attorney, attorney at law, attorney-at-law, AttorneyAtLaw, attorneys, canada, canadian, celine dion, celine-dion, CelineDion, children suing parents, ChildrenSuingParents, consensual living, ConsensualLiving, consensualparenting, court, courtroom, courtroom drama, courtroom procedure, courtroomdrama, courtrooms, daughter, daughters, father, fathers, kids suing parents, KidsSuingParents, law, law and order, LawAndOrder, laws, lawsuit, lawsuits, lawyer, lawyers, legal, legal drama, legaldrama, legalization, photo gallery, PhotoGallery

ReaderComments (Page 4 of 23)

Add Your Comments

Previous 20 Comments 23456 Next 20 Comments

FollowUs

Flickr RSS

TheTalkies

AskAdviceMama

How can I get my teenage son to open up?
AdviceMama Says:
Start by teaching him that it is safe to do so.
Read more