Trying To Have Some Parental Rights After Separating When You Are Not A Legal Parent

If you have ended a relationship in which children were involved, but the children were not yours, you may want to continue to have a relationship with the kids, just not the other parent. Unfortunately, this can be a legal nightmare, and you will need to have an experienced custody attorney to help you. Depending on the situation, here are a few rights you may be awarded.

Visitation

The legal parent has the right to determine who can and who cannot spend time with the children. If you have been involved with the children for a good portion of their lives, having you absent can be difficult for you and them. In order to be able to see them, you are going to need some type of court order awarding you visitation. Your lawyer will interview people who knew the relationship you had with the children to find out if it can be proved that your absence is detrimental to the children. This will include friends, relatives and teachers who can discuss the mental and emotional status of them. The court will hear all the information and decide whether you should be allowed to maintain a relationship with the children and what type of relationship it will be, such as day visits, overnight visits, or even taking them on a vacation.

Custody

Unfortunately, not all biological parents are able to support and raise their children in a manner that is safe and healthy for the children. You may have been the person the children went to when they needed something, given full financial support for them, and cared for them as a biological parent would have. However, unless you were able to adopt them during your relationship with their parent, you are not a legal parent. In order for you to be granted any type of custody, even joint custody with your ex, you are going to need to prove that the children will be at risk for some type of harm if they stay only with the parent at all times. This can get nasty in court, with your attorney trying to prove that the parent is not fit for sole custody. However, if this is the situation, you can get the needed proof to get custody and keep the children safe, healthy, and happy.

Keep in mind that trying to maintain a relationship with the children once you are no longer involved with the parent is going to be difficult at best. The other parent may try to turn the children against you, or even take them far away before you are awarded any rights. The most important thing you need to keep in mind is the children. If you notice that the whole situation is taking a toll on the kids, it might be best if you stop the proceedings. Let things calm down a bit and perhaps have the attorney act as a mediator to try to work out something with the parent for seeing the kids. For more information, visit sites like http://madisonlf.com. 

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