Asheboro's Trusted Grandparent Rights Attorneys
Grandparents are often an integral part of their grandchildren’s lives. Our grandparent custody lawyers are ready to help you when you want to ensure it stays that way. The Asheboro attorneys of Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Altamura LLP have decades of combined experience in protecting the rights of families across the Triad. Please call 336-405-8080 for a consultation or fill out a contact form on our contact page.
Helping Randolph County Grandparents with Their Custody and Visitation Rights
Most of us have fond memories of our grandparents growing up—baking together, reading together, celebrating holidays and other special occasions together. Today, grandparents continue to play a central role in the lives of their grandchildren, and in some situations, they may even step into the shoes of parents when the parents are unable to care for their children properly. For grandparents serving as primary caretakers or those loving grandparents who notice that their grandkids are not adequately being taken care of by their parents, they may be interested in pursuing custody of their grandchildren.
What can grandparents do to obtain custody and visitation rights in North Carolina?
Unfortunately, grandparents can encounter significant legal hurdles fighting for their grandchildren, since the law doesn’t formally or automatically grant these rights. If you are a grandparent serving as a primary caretaker and/or if you know that your grandchildren are not being treated and cared for properly, you may want to explore your legal options with a knowledgeable family law attorney.
The Asheboro family attorneys at Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Altamura LLP can help grandparents in child custody and visitation cases. We have an excellent record of representing grandparents throughout Randolph County.
Here are a few common questions we have answered for grandparents in Asheboro, North Carolina and surrounding areas:
1. What are my visitation and custody rights as a grandparent in North Carolina?
While it is possible for grandparents to obtain visitation and sometimes even custody rights in North Carolina, the circumstances for doing so are very narrow and the laws are quite complicated. The Asheboro custody attorneys at Garrett, Walker, Aycoth and Altamura LLP are ready to meet with you to thoroughly explain this process and your rights.
To briefly summarize, grandparents can file a petition for visitation if there is an open or ongoing custody case involving their grandchildren. When considering this petition for visitation, the court will consider if awarding visitation rights to the grandparents is in the best interest of the child. While there is no clear formula for this determination, the court will likely consider the following:
Grandparent custody rights can be harder to obtain than visitation rights, because courts usually will not award custody to grandparents unless it first determines that the parents have acted inconsistently with their protected legal status as parents. The family law attorneys of Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Altamura LLP have successfully navigated this difficult journey with many Asheboro grandparents who have sought custody in situations where the parents have abandoned their children, have abused their children, or have neglected their children often due to drug and alcohol addition or other mental health problems. Our Asheboro attorneys are here to help you determine your rights as a grandparent and to find the best solution for protecting your grandchildren.
2. How do I file for visitation or custody rights as a grandparent in North Carolina?
As discussed above, grandparents cannot simply open up a new court case to file for visitation rights—their must be an open custody matter or another narrow circumstance must apply. They are prohibited from filing for visitation rights if the grandchild’s parents are married to each other/the family is intact or the court has already issued a final child custody order. In these situations, the children’s parents have the legal right to raise their children as they see fit, which includes deciding who their children have contact with, including grandparents. However, there are two situations in which grandparents may have a right to visitation or custody in North Carolina:
Our Asheboro custody attorneys can help you determine if one of these situations apply to your case, and can assist you in filing for visitation or custody rights in Randolph County if you are eligible.
3. Can I adopt my grandchild in North Carolina?
If you are a grandparent who has provided long-term care for your grandchild, you may be interested in filing for adoption. To do so, the parental rights of your grandchild’s parents must first be terminated before the adoption may proceed. Our Asheboro adoption attorneys can assist you in these primary steps, as well as in the final stages of adoption, which often includes a post-placement assessment by the court to finalize the adoption.
4. What can I do if my grandchildren are facing an emergency in North Carolina?
Sometimes, emergency circumstances arrive placing grandchildren in immediate danger. In such a case, waiting months for a visitation or custody action to resolve would not be practical. If you believe your grandchild is being placed in physical harm or other danger, you should immediately contact local law enforcement and Child Protective Services in order to remove the child from any direct threat they are facing.
You may also require the assistance of an emergency custody attorney to pursue an immediate custody order from the court in Randolph County. The Asheboro custody attorneys at Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Altamura LLP have decades of combined experience in successfully representing grandparents in obtaining emergency custody orders for their grandchildren. If your grandchildren are facing an emergency, you can reach us at 336-405-8080 or by email at Asheboro@gwa-law.com . We are located in Asheboro at 515 W. Salisbury Street, Suite C, in the Carolina Farmer’s Mutual Building.
"Leah Shellberg is the most caring and kind hearted attorney I've every done business with! She was truly amazing!"
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"Leah Shellberg is passionate and knowledgeable. Deftly handled the maneuverings of the court system for a very satisfactory outcome. Would use and recommend again and again and again."
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"Matt Altamura represented me in my separation with an equitable distribution. He was very knowledgeable about the issues I was dealing with, as well as sensitive to the heartache I felt at having to endure all I was facing. Communication was never an issue. He and his staff kept me very well informed. When all was said and done, my settlement was more than I had originally requested."
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