Do Grandparents Have Rights?

 

Grandparents can be a valuable resource for parents and the role they play in their grandchildren’s lives is also extremely important.

However, no one has any right to a relationship with a child.

All parenting decisions, whether the parents are together or separated, should have the child’s best interests as the focus. This includes decisions about who the children should spend time with.

It is generally the parents’ decision what type of role grandparents play in their grandchildren’s lives, including how often they see them and how they communicate with them.

If there is a close relationship between the grandparents and the children, then this is likely to be important for this to continue this after separation. However, all family members need to be flexible and understand that this may not look the same as it did when the parents were together.

The children will be sharing their time between two households after separation and therefore there may need to be a change to the usual time they spend with their grandparents to ensure that they have enough quality time with each of their parents.

Grandparents and other family members may need to take a step back initially to allow the parents to reach an agreement about their parenting arrangements without the added pressure of their own wants and desires. The children need to come first and it is extremely important for them to be kept out of any conflict situations.

If there is conflict between the grandparents and the parents (or one of the parents) that results in the grandparents not seeing the children then they do have the ability to seek parenting Orders in relation to spending time and communicating with the child.

The Court will be asked to determine whether or not it is in the child’s best interest to have a continuing relationship with the grandparents when balancing out the additional considerations.

We strongly recommend that grandparents attempt to reach an agreement with the parents before considering litigation. Mediation and family counselling are both options that can be explored to see if a relationship can be sustained.