Grandparents’ rights to visit and contact their grandchildren are provided for by Florida law. However, it is very important to know that the Florida Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court have explained that such laws represent an unconstitutional invasion of the parents’ rights to raise their own child.
Both supreme courts seek to place the child in the best possible environment. The decisions have shown that these courts intended to afford the natural parents their privacy, and that the parents should be able to raise their children in the manner that they see appropriate.
There are still several circumstances where a grandparent or another relative can seek custody in order to protect the child from an unsafe environment. If your grandchild is the victim of neglect, abandonment, or any type of child abuse, you do have the right to go to court to seek a safe and stable home for the child. If a grandparent, aunt, uncle, sibling, or other relative can provide a safer and abuse-free environment, and it is in the child’s best interests, such relatives could receive custody of that child.
These types of custody changes almost invariably require experienced legal advice and assistance. We always have the child’s best interests at heart and we know that this child is important to you. We will work with you and help you to find the best solution to the child’s situation that will result in a stable, loving, and caring environment. We can meet with you to speak in great detail about the circumstances surrounding your unique situation in order to make the best decision about how to progress with your case.