It may be surprising to some parents that that their own parents may petition a court and obtain a court order requiring them to allow grandparent visitation.  To most parents the right to make decisions and raise their children as they see fit, including the amount grandparent visitation, is a right inherent in being a parent.  However, in some instances the court may find that court ordered grandparent visitation is appropriate.  Keep in mind that this blog article only is speaking to grandparent visitation of a child, not custody of a child where a parent is unfit or absent.

One situation where we see grandparents get an order allowing visitation or “grandparent-time” is when a child has an absent parent, due to death or abandonment, and absent parent’s own parents, therefore, do not get to see their grandchild because of a deteriorated relationship with the child’s remaining parent.

Generally speaking, parents have a constitutional right to manage the care, custody and control of their child, which includes the right to make decisions regarding grandparent visitation.  However, a parent’s right to make decisions regarding his or her child’s upbringing is not absolute.  For example, while parents have the right to generally decide where to send their children to school, a state may nevertheless adopt compulsory school attendance laws requiring that you send your children to school before they reach a certain age.  A state can also exercise its “parens patriae” power and intervene on behalf of children in abusive or neglectful situations even if the parent objects.  The state must generally show that there is some important interest that trumps the parent’s constitutional right. (more…)

In 2010, both the Fourth of July holiday and the Utah Pioneer Day holiday, on July 24th, fall on the weekend but courts and some places of business are closed on July 5th and July 23rd because of these holidays.  This is enough to cause parents to argue about what the holiday actually means when they look at their parent-time.

All we can do is direct parents to Utah Code Annotated Section 30-3-35 (2)(e), which reads as follows: (more…)

As most divorced  or divorcing parents in Utah know, Utah follows a strict child support guideline that is calculated according to gross income and the number of overnights that each parent has the child or children in a year.  Utah Code 78B-12-301 gives the amount of child support that is paid per the number of children in the family.  It is important to realize that the figure is the COMBINED child support of both parents and that each parent will only be obligated for a percentage of that amount.  If you have both parties income information and the number of overnights each parent has the child/ren, using a child support calculator is the best way to make an accurate estimate of child support.

What many people do not realize is that Utah Code contains a very important provision for both parents paying child support and parents receiving child support. In 2008 and 2009, parents who were getting FIRST TIME orders for final child support were subject to a higher child support table than those who had received child support orders PRIOR to January 1, 2008.  However, parties who had final child support orders PRIOR to January 1, 2008 were not at risk of being subject to the higher child support guidelines.  But, the big news is that, as of January 1, 2010, final orders for child support that were put in place any time PRIOR to January 1, 2008 are subject to the higher child support guidelines if the parent getting child support files a request for modification with the court and meets the appropriate standards, which will  be described below.

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