FAMILY LAW
Non-Parent Caregivers
In certain circumstances, one or both parents are not the most ideal person to care for their child. Instead, a grandparent may be the most appropriate person to care for a child, or it may be someone other than a family member who has been caring for a child’s needs and developed a psychological bond with that child. Nathan and the team at McGuire Law have assisted many non-parents and grandparents in their efforts to be allocated parental responsibilities and/or family time and understand what it takes to position your case in the best light possible.
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Non-Parent Caregivers
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Non-Parent Caregivers
In certain circumstances, a person who is not a child’s parent is entitled to receive court ordered contact with that child. Such a person might be a grandparent, a great-grandparent, a family member, or an unrelated person who has cared for the child in the same manner as a parent. Whether a non-parent has a right to receive court ordered contact with a child over the objection of a parent is a difficult process to navigate.
Non-Parent Allocation of Parental Responsibilities:
While courts primarily address disputes concerning the allocation of parental responsibilities between parents – whether in a divorce or separation context or in an allocation of parental responsibilities action – there are certain circumstances where a non-parent may petition the court with a request to be allocated parental responsibilities for a child.
Most commonly, for a non-parent to have standing (the ability) to ask the court to allocate parental responsibilities to them, that non-parent must have had physical care of a child for a period of longer than 6 months where the end of that physical care had not occurred more than 6 months prior to raising the issue with the court.
This “physical care” requirement is more than an adult spending a lot of time with a child, otherwise any babysitter, daycare provider, or roommate could ask the court to be given parenting time over the objection of a child’s parent. Rather, to meet this standard, the child must have also developed a strong psychological bond with the non-parent, such that they look to the non-parent as a source daily guidance, nurturance, and emotional support. Only when a child and a non-parent have developed a psychological parent/child bond may a non-parent seek to be awarded parenting time an
It is important to note, however, that even if that psychological bond exists, it will still be an uphill battle for a non-parent to be allocated parental responsibilities over the objection of the parents. In Colorado, and nationally, a child’s parents have a constitutional right (fundamental liberty interest) to direct the care, control, and upbringing of their child. Based on the existence of this fundamental liberty interest, it is presumed that the decisions parents make concerning their child, including a decision to not allow a non-parent contact with their child, are in their
Whether you are a non-parent seeking court ordered contact with a child or are a parent contesting a non-parent’s request for contact with your child, presentation of your case to the Court is complex and requires a detailed understanding constitutional law (state and federal) and Colorado statutes and case law codifying and interpreting that law. The attorneys at McGuire Law have the knowledge and experience to guide you through the non-parent allocation of parental responsibilities process and look forward to the opportunity to assist you in a way that is most appropriate for you and the child involved.
Grandparent and Great-grandparent Family Time:
While grandparents and great-grandparents do not have constitutional rights to be involved in the lives of their grandchildren and great-grandchildren, in Colorado a grandparent or great-grandparent does have the right to seek a Court order for grandparent and great-grandparent family time. Typically, these requests are made because the parents of the child are refusing to allow grandparents or great-grandparents to have contact with the child, although these situations are often not straightforward as they might include situations where one or both parents has passed away, where a grandparent or great-grandparent believes a child as being emotionally or physically harmed by a parent, or where a parent is impacted by mental health issues.
The difficulty in obtaining orders for grandparent or great-grandparent family time is that parents have a constitutional right to control the care and upbringing of their children. This means that courts will presume that the decisions of the parents relating to grandparent or great-grandparent family time is in the child’s best interests. To overcome the presumption that the decision of the parent is in the best interests of the child, grandparents and great-grandparents must prove by clear and convincing evidence that grandparent or great-grandparent family time is in the best interest of the child.
The standard that grandparents and great-grandparents must meet is much higher than the typical preponderance of the evidence standard that is considered by Courts in allocating parental responsibilities between two parents. Indeed, disputes between grandparents and parents is not a contest between equals and Courts will defer to the decisions of parents in all but the most extreme circumstances.
Presentation of your grandparent or great-grandparent family time case to the Court must be done in a way that respects the parent(s) involvement but appropriately explains to the Court why the parent’s (parents’) decision to forbid contact with a grandparent or great-grandparent is clearly not in the child’s best interests. Such a presentation requires the assistance of an attorney who is experienced and able to navigate the subtleties of this dynamic.