Grandparents in Pennsylvania can seek custody or visitation rights in certain situations, but they do not have the same legal rights as a child’s parents.
If you worry about losing time with your grandchild, you are not alone. Many grandparents become an important source of care, support and stability in a child’s life. When a parent dies, the parents divorce or family circumstances change, questions about maintaining a legal relationship with a grandchild can arise. State law allows grandparents to ask a court to consider custody or visitation in certain situations.
When can grandparents seek rights?
State law recognizes several situations in which grandparents can ask a court to consider custody or visitation:
- Having a grandchild whose parent has passed away
- Having grandchildren whose parents have separated or filed for divorce
- Providing care for a grandchild who lived in your home for a period of time
- Meeting another circumstance recognized under state law
The existence of one of these situations does not automatically lead to custody or visitation rights. Instead, it allows a grandparent to bring the issue before the court for consideration.
How do courts decide?
Courts decide custody matters based on the child’s best interests. They review the family’s circumstances and consider how the requested arrangement relates to the child’s well-being and family relationships.
The reason for the request, the grandparent’s relationship with the child and the family’s circumstances can all affect whether a court will consider the request and how it evaluates the case. As a result, grandparent custody and visitation matters can differ from one family to another.
Why grandparent rights can differ
Pennsylvania law gives grandparents limited custody and visitation rights based on their family’s circumstances. The event that led to the request, the amount of time a grandparent spent caring for the child and the family’s current situation can all affect whether a court can consider the matter.
Because grandparent custody and visitation matters depend heavily on the facts of each family, they can involve a wide range of circumstances and legal questions. Our firm represents individuals and families throughout Berks County and Lehigh County and maintains convenient offices in Wyomissing and Allentown for family law matters involving custody, visitation and related issues under Pennsylvania law.