Location: Texas
My husband and I are getting divorced. It’s amicable 90% of the time. The 10% it is not is when his mother gets involved. Info: she is in a political cult. She is INCREDIBLY aggressive about her beliefs, and will start screaming at you and calling you disrespectful if you disagree with anything she says. I told me husband that in the custody agreement I want it put that she cannot be alone with the kids at any point. That she can only see them if one of us is present.
She now telling my mother that she is going to sue for defamation of character (because I told my husband that I “absolutely hate her” and he told her in one of the moments where he was upset at me (this has been an emotional experience) and for grandparents rights. The kids have never lived even in the same state as them, though they did send us a lot of things for the boys (presents, clothes, etc)
Do they have any chance of winning grandparents rights?
Comments
A quick Google search shows you shouldn’t have anything to worry about, but it’d be best to talk to your lawyer and make sure.
NAL, psychologist/custody evaluator.
This isn’t about grandparents rights, this is about parental rights. In most circumstances, a parent can choose who they want to be around their children during their own parenting time. That means that if your co-parent wants to leave the kids with his mom, he almost certainly can.
>I told me husband that in the custody agreement I want it put that she cannot be alone with the kids at any point. That she can only see them if one of us is present.
It is very unlikely that any judge will agree to this. I’ve personally only seen this kind of request granted when the grandparent is a sex offender or poses a direct threat to the kid.
>She now telling my mother that she is going to sue for defamation of character (because I told my husband that I “absolutely hate her” and he told her in one of the moments where he was upset at me (this has been an emotional experience)
That’s unlikely to be successful
>and for grandparents rights. The kids have never lived even in the same state as them, though they did send us a lot of things for the boys (presents, clothes, etc)
Do they have any chance of winning grandparents rights?
If your husband wants her in the kids’ lives, she doesn’t need to petition for grandparents rights. He, as a parent, will almost certainly be able to make that choice.
That being said, divorce is one of the circumstances under which a Texas court may grant grandparent visitation.
You probably can’t control her access when the kids are with their father, but she has no legal claim to make in Texas.
Grandparents can sue for visitation only under very specific circumstances in Texas (one or both parents are dead or incarcerated, documented child abuse, the children have been living with them for an extended period). Grandparents can sue for visitation in Texas but they’d have to prove that there was some barrier to the kids seeing them while your ex has his visits.
A judge will probably not grant your restriction unless you can provide proof of harm. As always, speak to your lawyer.