Do grandparents Have Rights in a Child Support Case?

Do grandparents Have Rights in a Child Support Case?

We get calls all the time from grandparent that have custody of a child or want visitation of their grandchildren. We offer the following as a guideline to help answer questions regarding grandparent rights:

-grandparents have the right to see their grand children. If the custodial parent does not allow for visitation, the grandparent may need to petition the court to receive court ordered visitation. The court may grant visitation if it is the best interest of the child. The courts try very hard to keep the life of the child as normal as possible which would include interaction with the grandparents.

– a grandparent may file for custody of a child whose parents are divorcing. The grandparent may not be awarded custody but the courts will take the petition of the grandparents into consideration when determining who should have custody of the child. If the courts deem the biological parent to be unfit caregivers, they grandparents may be awarded full custody

-paternity of a child is generally not questioned in a divorce cases unlike a child born out of wedlock. If paternity does become an issue, the court may deny visits for the paternal grandparent until the father has been legally proven to be the father of the child.

-if a parent signs over their paternal rights, the visitation rights of the grandparent would be waived in most cases. The judge may grant some visitation to the grandparents even if parental rights are signed away.