no greater loss

October 17, 2011

Grandparents visitation rights in Kentucky

Reasonable grandparents visitation rights in Kentucky may be awarded to either paternal or maternal grandparents if the court determines that it is in the best interest of the child to do so. These visitation rights may even survive the termination of parental rights belonging to the grandparent’s son or daughter, who is the father or mother of the child, if the court decides that visitation is in the child’s best interest. A grandparent whose child is deceased and who supplies […]
October 8, 2011

Grandparents rights in Utah

Grandparents rights in Utah are a contentious issue as they are in every state. Of course, as everywhere many people in Utah believe that family is the most important thing in life. Families bring happiness and grief to individuals living in Ogden, Salt Lake, Provo, St. George, and the rest of Utah. The importance of families contributes to the reason why there is so much emotion in family law issues such as child custody.  Because of the importance of families in […]
October 6, 2011

Grandparents rights in Texas

Texas’ concept of grandparents rights is in line with many of the other states I have examined. As always, to get the best overview of grandparents rights in the USA search through my website Caring Grandparents and read my book No Greater Loss. It pretty much goes without saying that everything behind grandparents rights can be incredibly emotional.When grandparents have to seek legal intervention to just see their grandchildren, emotions abound on all sides of the spectrum with the grandparents, […]
October 3, 2011

Grandparents rights in Louisiana

As everywhere, grandparents rights in Louisiana are a complicated and tangled affair. I’ll do my best to explain the current situation. More information on grandparents rights in general and an explanation of many of these terms and legal concepts can be found on my website Caring Grandparents and in my book No Greater Loss. About 30% of adults in the U.S. are grandparents, and the number of children living with their grandparents has markedly increased in the last 20 years […]
September 6, 2011

US census data: Grandparents raising grandchildren grows

Grandparents raising grandchildren is not a new phenomenon. It is, however, a rapidly growing one. Census data shows that the incidence of increased grandparent involvement in raising their own grandchildren is getting more and more common. As of 2010 about 6 million children, nearly 8 percent of all children, were recorded as living with grandparents identified as head of household. That number is nearly twice what it was in the 2000 census. Sometimes grandparents must take over a child who […]
September 1, 2011

Getting your grandparents rights written into a divorce settlement

When you are trying to gain grandparents visitation rights, it really is essential that you do things correctly. If you don’t, the consequences can be devastating. You could wind up without regular visitation, or even no visitation. Of course, things could also go smoothly, but do you really want to take that chance? It is during the time of a divorce in which your grandchildren are involved that you need to act. During this time courts will allow both parties […]
August 28, 2011

What is Elder Law?

More and more these days, people are asking me about Elder Law. As the nation ages, it has become an important part of our legal system. Grandparent rights are part of Elder Law, but they are not the only part. If you don’t know what Elder Law is, you should learn. Elder Law is a composition of legislations that determine the rights and obligations that apply to those who are considered elderly. Elder applies to anyone who is, knows, or […]
August 12, 2011

Do grandparents have the rights to grandparent visitation?

Do grandparents really have the right to visit their grandchildren? In cases where they are denied access to their grandchildren, grandparents may be able to petition the court for grandparents visitation rights, but there are some restrictions on their ability to do so. The biggest obstacle to grandparents petitioning for visitation rights is a 2000 Supreme Court case, Troxel v. Granville, which struck down a Washington state law allowing third parties, like grandparents, to petition the court for visitation over […]
August 6, 2011

Are we losing our grandparents rights?

Are grandparents rights slipping away from us? Are we losing them? This question comes at me more and more ever since the terrible Supreme Court decision of Troxell over a decade ago, and every time a battle for grandparents rights is lost or delayed in the courts or legislatures around the country. Grandparents rights are not something that are given to us. It is incumbent upon us to be proactive. I don’t mean that we take something from someone as much as […]