grandparent rights Archives - Family Diplomacy

Florida Child Custody, Military Service, and Grandparents’ Rights

January 24, 2014/0 Comments/in Florida Statutes //Tags: child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, Florida child custody, grandparent rights, military divorce, stepparents' rights, temporary child custodyby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

If a parent who is the subject of a Florida child custody order is activated, deployed, or temporarily assigned to military service, that military parent may be able to designate the child’s grandparents to care for the child in his or her absence.

Florida Statutes section 61.13002(2) states that, if a military parent so desires, a grandparent can take over that parent’s time-sharing schedule under certain circumstances. The activation, deployment, or temporary assignment must be ordered for more than 90 days and materially affect the military parent’s ability to exercise his or her time-sharing rights. The military parent must notify the other parent of the designation in writing. The written notice must be provided to the other parent at least 10 days before the grandparent is to take over the military parent’s time-sharing.

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Private Child Custody Proceedings: Florida Collaborative Practice

November 14, 2013/1 Comment/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: bisexual parental rights, child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, co-parenting, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, Florida child custody, gay and lesbian parents, gay parental rights, grandparent rights, International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, lesbian parental rights, parent child relationship, parental responsibility, parental rights, parenting plan, same sex couples, sexual orientation and child custody, shared parental responsibility, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, temporary child custodyby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

When people are seeking to gain child custody rights in Florida – whether through divorce, paternity, establishment of parenting plan, grandparent custody, or other proceedings – the first step they usually take is file a petition with the Clerk of the Court.

Generally speaking, this is a mistake.

By filing a petition, they are entering into the public court system which pits mother against father. This is an adversarial system which oftentimes leads parties to engage in emotionally and financially draining court battles, and all dirty laundry gets examined and aired.

But there is another way, a private way of determining parental responsibility and child time-sharing schedules. It is called collaborative practice, also known as collaborative family law.

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Florida Grandparents’ Rights and Collaborative Divorce

June 22, 2013/2 Comments/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: child custody, child custody case, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, Florida child custody, grandparent rights, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Lawby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

Grandparents are, no doubt, an important part of the lives of Florida’s children. The state government has on several occasions since 1978 enacted legislation to recognize Florida grandparent visitation and custody rights. However, each statute which attempted to raise grandparents’ rights to the level of parents’ rights has been struck down by the Florida Supreme Court and appellate decisions as violating the fundamental rights of parents.

One effect of these court decisions is that a family law judge will not grant grandparents any visitation rights over the objection of a fit parent during divorce proceedings.

But what if there was a divorce process in which the importance of grandparents’ interaction with their grandchildren could be recognized? There is, and the process is called collaborative divorce.

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Can I Adopt My Grandchild in Florida?

June 5, 2012/2 Comments/in Adoption //Tags: adoption, adoption entity, adult adoption, close relative adoption, concurrent custody, Florida adoption, gay adoption, grandparent rights, lesbian adoption, non-relative adoption, second parent adoption, stepchild adoption, stepparent adoption, Tampa Bay Adoption, temporary child custodyby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

Do you have a grandchild or other close relative living with you? Do you want to ensure that you have the legal ability to make healthcare, education, and other major decisions for the child? Do you want to legally establish the close relationship that already exists between you and the child?

You may be eligible to adopt your grandchild or other close relative, and fortunately, Florida has expedited procedures in place to facilitate such adoptions.

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Concurrent Custody vs. Temporary Custody

November 14, 2011/0 Comments/in Divorce //Tags: child custody, concurrent custody, Florida Statutes, grandparent rights, parental responsibility, parenting plan, paternity, temporary child custody, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

I recently wrote a post explaining temporary custody by an extended family member, a type of action which allows parents to temporarily transfer their custody rights to a relative. Once a judge grants a petition for temporary custody, the relative temporarily assumes the parents’ right to make decisions concerning the child’s healthcare and education, and also assumes the right to obtain documents such as birth certificates and passports.

However, sometimes parents want to give a relative custody rights while also retaining the rights for themselves. Chapter 751 of the Florida Statutes allows for this arrangement in what is termed “concurrent custody.”

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Temporary Custody by an Extended Family Member

November 6, 2011/1 Comment/in Divorce //Tags: child custody, Florida Statutes, grandparent rights, parental responsibility, parenting plan, paternity, temporary child custody, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

If you have a nephew, niece, or grandchild living with you, you may have run into a roadblock when attempting to acquire his or her birth records or passport. Further, you may have gotten the run around when attempting to make decisions concerning the child’s education or healthcare. Fortunately, this state has a solution in chapter 751 of the Florida Statutes.

Chapter 751 permits an extended family member to take temporary custody of a minor child, access state and other records, and make major decisions concerning a child’s upbringing. But, keep in mind, temporary custody must be granted by a Florida court (and cannot simply be signed away by a parent), and there are strict procedural requirements that must be met.

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Tag Archive for: grandparent rights

Florida Child Custody, Military Service, and Grandparents’ Rights

Private Child Custody Proceedings: Florida Collaborative Practice

Florida Grandparents’ Rights and Collaborative Divorce

Can I Adopt My Grandchild in Florida?

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