California law acknowledges that the bond between grandparents and grandchildren can be very special, and that both parties often benefit from interacting regularly.

Grandparents can teach youngsters about manners and customs, play sports with them, and pass along lessons from previous generations. Grandchildren can inspire their elders to be more active, have a lighter sense of humor, and give them lots of hugs that perhaps they wouldn’t receive otherwise.

If you’re a grandparent that would like to legally gain visitation rights to see your grandchild (or grandchildren), there are some important considerations to keep in mind.

Try to Talk it Out

If at all possible, it’s always a good idea to try to resolve disputes between parents and grandparents outside of the court system. It’s a much less costly approach and it often leads to more family harmony, as opposed to taking family members to court. Even if you aren’t able to work things out on your own, and decide to bring your case to court, judges often send require those who are involved in family law cases to attend mediation anyhow.

At Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell, we can offer you sound legal counsel and compassionately and effectively mediate between parties to resolve any grandparent visitation rights disagreements. Just call (909) 920-0908 to set up a free initial consultation about your particular situation.

But if you’ve tried and failed to work things out on your own, applying to the California court system may be your best option. Knowing what the law allows is an important first step in what may be a lengthy process.

First and foremost, in the majority of situations, grandparents may not petition the California court system for visitation rights if both parents of the child are legally married.

There are notable exceptions to this rule, though, such as:

• The parents aren’t living together
• For at least a month, one parent’s whereabouts are unknown.
• One parent joins the grandparent’s petition for visitation
• The child doesn’t live with either of his or her parents
• The grandchild has been adopted by a stepparent

To grant reasonable visitation privileges to a grandparent, the court must find that:

• The grandparent and grandchild have a preexisting relationship that is being endangered, so preserving that bold by having visitation is in the best interests of the grandchild.
• The court must strike a balance between acknowledging that grandparent visitation is in the best interests of the child and the parent’s authority to make decisions for their child.

This link contains the California law applicable to grandparents’ rights. Feel free to review it on your own and come talk about your situation at Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell. Our top-notch attorney has dealt with many grandparents’ rights cases in his [year] year career, so you can rest assured that you’ll receive impeccable legal advice and representation in court.

For grandparent visitation privileges, and any other family or business law case, just call (909) 920-0908 to set up a free initial consultation with Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell.