In a recent post to the ISBA family law discussion group, Nancy Dryden of Newton posed this question: "I represent a mom in a modification of custody battle. The 13-year-old half-brother of the minor at issue is very eager to testify on behalf of the parent I'm representing. He wishes to respond to allegations of actions by my client that involved him as well as his half-sibling who is the subject of the custody battle. Would the court allow him to testify? If so, are there any drawbacks?"

Eric Frobish of Morris wrote this: "If the child is competent to testify, then the judge technically doesn't have any choice in the matter. CAVEAT: my experience has always been that judges will bend over backwards to avoid putting a minor on the stand in a custody hearing. You're taking a chance of really ticking the judge off by putting this kid on the stand, which would presumably not be to your client's benefit. It may be a bit less upsetting to the judge since it's not the child who is the subject of the litigation, but...."

Read more in the February Illinois Bar Journal, and find out more about ISBA discussion groups here.