what are my rights to see my 6 month old granddaughter in the state of PA? I had been seeing her once a week either in person or via FaceTime since she was born in July. I live in NJ and my granddaughter lives in Philadelphia.
Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: Pennsylvania Already Tried: My daughter texted me that I am never to see my granddaughter again, and that was out of the blue. I did not respond because she told me that she never wanted to talk to me again either. I did not want to inflame the situation so I have just tried to gather myself together for the last week, not knowing what to do.
Grandparents in Pennsylvania may seek visitation or "reasonable partial custody" if a parent of the child has died or if the parents are divorced or have been separated for six months or more. The court is instructed to consider the amount of personal contact that took place before the application. In addition, if the child resided with the grandparent for twelve months or more and was removed from the grandparent's home by parents, the court may rule in favor of visitation. As in all of the United States, the court must consider whether visitation is in the child's best interest. In addition, in Pennsylvania, the court must consider whether visitation would interfere with the parent-child relationship. Great-grandparents have the same rights as parents.
I have read the above from finding this info on the web. My daughter is not married to my granddaughter's husband but they both live together. I want to know if I have any rights to see my granddaughter. If I do, I can then hire an attorney and proceed.
If the parents are living together then a court will generally not contradict or overrule the wishes of the parents. Grandparent visitation rights are only enforceable when the a child's biological parents have divorced or one has died and the grandparent is being barred by the other parent.
Experience: Over 25 years of experience.