Grandparents Rights Attorney in Tomball
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Grandparents And Divorce
Divorces often leave more than just the relationship of the former partners compromised. It can also affect the families of both parties, in particular the grandparents of the children. It’s not unheard of for grandparents to spend a lot of time with their grandkids. They often spoil the kids while teaching them valuable life lessons. Grandparents are also a source of adult support outside of the parents, and it’s not unusual for their children to ask them to look out for their grandkids while they’re out.
Grandparents can sue for visitation and custody of the grandchildren when they, too, act in their grandkids’ best interest. As with many domestic cases, many emotions are on the table, and it’s often rather complicated as it is confusing to sort out.
In Tomball, Texas , grandparents don’t have the constitutional rights to their grandchildren. The parents are the foremost people with that right. Parents can decide on behalf of their children not to give the grandparents the right to visitation or custody of their children.
There is an exception that the court will consider, though, that would give the grandparents a window of time to pursue custody of their grandchildren.
Grandparents Can Be Guardians
In Texas, the court will hear the grandparents’ case if a parent is incompetent, incarcerated, or deceased. In those situations, the children’s grandparents could argue that contact is in the child’s best interest since they can serve as a positive adult influence.
Other specific situations can also give the grandparents’ rights to their grandchildren; however, visitation must be in the child’s best interest. The first situation is that the parents are divorced; the second is child abuse. The third situation that can give grandparents rights to their grandchildren is that the court has terminated the parent-child relationship.
The parent-child relationship can be terminated for many reasons, such as a child protection case. If the child is orphaned or the parents have given up their parental rights, the court may terminate the parent-child relationship.
Grandparents can also sue for the custody of their grandchildren if they deem that the parents cannot support the child. They can also sue if the child has lived with them for at least six months. Once grandparents do have custody, they can then sue the parents for child support.
In the case of being orphaned, grandparents cannot have the right to sue for access to their grandkids once a third party has adopted them. By that point, the child is legally considered a member of the other family.
Get Legal Help Now
Grandparents’ rights are not always clear-cut, and they’re often limited. The court wishes to protect the parent’s rights, but they also want the best for the children if the parents cannot provide that to them. If you’re a grandparent who is denied access to your grandchildren, we can understand the emotions you might be feeling. Depending on the situation and your reason, you might be able to take legal action against it. If you’re in Tomball or Houston Texas, Eaton Family Law Group can help you today, just give us a call.
