I read on here some time ago about someone stretching visits and communication farther apart slowly over time, so that when their ILs took them to court it was clear they were offering visits and communication, just not at the schedule the ILs wanted (which helped them prevent unsupervised visits). They did things like invite ILs to school events or sports (knowing they didn’t want to go) and reply to calls later and later each time until they were able to fade the relationship down to a level (and the kids had reached an age) where a court was significantly less likely to order anything “in the best interest”.
Has anyone else successfully done this and how did you go about it? Any schedule or tips?
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I’ve done this with my own parents, not that I think they’ll apply for rights but I used to think they might. It has worked quite well
I haven’t had to deal with this but if your think they would take you to court based on their behaviors, I think cutting back contact and visits is in the best interest of you and the child
My IL’s never threatened with GPR after we went nc in April 2022. But I have been keeping them away all this time. No birthday’s, events invites for them. When they text my husband to visit them, hubby goes alone. Kids might visit them with daddy once -twice a year. So no relationship whatsoever with the grandkids. Their requests “ come more often, bring the kids over” get ignored.
My MIL told my husband “I have rights!” when my son was a newborn because she was angry she didn’t have any control over how frequently she could visit (she wanted to drop in unannounced at her convenience instead of scheduling with us. At this point she was visiting every 3 weeks) I cut down on visits until I cut contact a year ago.
Do you know what the GPR criteria is in your state? In mine, there needs to be a death or divorce and a pre-existing relationship with the child that would be detrimental to lose for the child. I haven’t known anyone who did it, but you could probably contact a family law attorney for advice.
I am not a lawyer and I would definitely consult one before taking action. In Pennsylvania where you are grandparents rights are normally only granted in cases of the death of a parent, divorce or separation, the child has lived with the grandparents for at least 12 months or if the child has a significant relationship with the grandparents that a separation would cause them harm.
So a fade out might work if you meet one of the above criteria but you really need to talk to a local family law attorney to see what can be done.