May 1, 2010
Courts convene to consider the extent of grandparents rights in any custody or visitation case, the one huge overriding factor is the standard of Best Interest of the Child. Courts in every jurisdiction across the country must consider the best interests of the child standard when granting custody or visitation rights to a grandparent. The factors which determine that “best interest” are of primary importance to the court when considering what to do. Basically, if you are involved in this type of case the court will look at these factors above all else when evaluating how far grandparents rights extend. […]
April 26, 2010
When grandparents rights are implemented in the way they were intended a great amount of good is the result. Nearly every state in the union has some form of grandparents rights legislation and, according to every court case, custody evaluation, and case study I have read all of these state laws place the emphasis in the best interest of the child. If there was ever a win-win situation then this is it. If only life were that clear cut. My heart aches a lot when I read the transcripts of the cases of very abused and neglected children. Story after story […]
April 18, 2010
This message is not intended to scare you. Actually, I hope it will instead inform you enough and give you some concrete ideas about what is out there for grandparents to enjoy. At the same time, I want to make you aware that your grandparents rights are important when it comes to these matters. Grandparents are as a group about 1/3rd of all adults in America. They contribute in extraordinary proportions to their grandkid’s well being. A few examples according to AARP are: 1. More than half of grandparents help with their grandchildren’s educational expenses. 2. Almost half of grandparents help […]
April 17, 2010
When grandparents have to fight their own children for grandparent rights or custody of grandchildren they must actually deal with entirely different set of stress factors and pain than when a parents fight each other. Grandparents may actually find themselves accused of everything from physical abuse to mental abuse to using drugs. This is possible, because any real or imagined grievances or misdeeds from your children’s childhood can be brought up in order to assault or accuse grandparents who only want their rights. It is more common than ever for grandparents to get physical custody with the incident of hard […]
April 14, 2010
Wisdom is sometimes just listening. It is sometimes teaching, learning, supporting, sharing and/or empathizing. Wisdom is a grandparents gift to their grandchildren. Wisdom is worth sharing with those we love. God knows it is one of our grandparents rights since we have worked so hard for it. It would be scary for those of us that are grandparents to put a price on the wisdom we have gained through the years. The blood, sweat and tears that has been invested in raising and nurturing our families is commensurate with the wisdom we have garnered along the way. Oh, the good […]
April 11, 2010
I thank God every day that I don’t need to assert my grandparents rights on behalf of my grandchildren. It is heart rending to read about some circumstances that put children in volatile and dangerous situations due to a change in the structure of their functioning family unit. These changes can occur because of the death of one of the parents or (as is true in one half of the marriages) a divorce that results in an extended family and all sorts of legal implications. In increasing numbers we are seeing drug use and/or incarceration causing instability and peril to […]
April 9, 2010
If you are a grandparent then you already know the joy of a grandchild. Your own child (the grandkid’s parent) may be amazed at how the strictest parent they ever knew is now the biggest pushover they have ever known. Even though you said no to your kids about everything the word might never out of your mouth now for your grandchildren. However, many grandparents have taken the grandchildren into their homes. This changes things a great deal and the changes are not always for the better. Reports say the 2.4 million grandparents are exercising their grandparents rights in raising […]
April 3, 2010
It all starts when that little bundle of joy wraps his or her tiny hand around Grandpa’s finger. Now they have you……forever. Don’t fight it, the struggle is useless, you are hooked. The journey has begun. This is to be a journey of discovery for the new grandparents and for the repeat grandparents, still a thrill all the same. After 6 grandchildren in the past 20 years I can attest that each time is breathtaking, awesome and wonderful. Aren’t you glad to hear the good news? Well, as you may have guessed there is a challenge in this process as […]
March 25, 2010
Check out the article I’ve just had published on parents rights and granparents rights on Ezine@rticles! I really think that it goes to the heart of these issues. I want to trumpet, declare and celebrate the fact that parents rights are and should be superior to grandparents rights. As a grandfather I am in awe of the great job my children and their spouses are doing in raising our grandchildren to be loving and lovable human beings. I don’t foresee any need for me to even have grandparents rights much less to have to assert them in a court of […]
March 21, 2010
In today’s society more than half of all marriages end in divorce. This creates problems and challenges for the immediate family unit but also for the extended family when it comes to grandparents visitation rights. Depending on the atmosphere surrounding the separation and divorce this could cause tremendous anxiety and even alienation. This could leave the grandparents out in the cold. This is an especially difficult time when there are children involved. The children feel great sadness because often they somehow feel like they are to blame. When a divorce happens, the courts have to decide who gets custody of […]