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…)

Following the recent death of Gary Coleman on May 28, 2010, Mr. Coleman’s ex-wife wants to be declared his current wife in Utah Court.  Shannon Price and Gary Coleman divorced in 2008, but Ms. Price claims that she and and Mr. Coleman continued to live together as husband and wife until his death.  She asks the Utah Courts to declare them “common law” married.  She makes this request because she wishes to administer Mr. Coleman’s estate.

Utah is one of the few states that still allows a declaration of Common Law Marriage.  The declaration must be made by the court within one year of the end of the relationship.  On June 14th, a Utah judge will hear evidence to determine whether or not a common law marriage existed between Gary Coleman and Shannon Price.

Under Utah law, Ms. Price must prove that the parties:

* were of legal age and capable of giving consent;
* were legally capable of entering a solemnized marriage under Utah law;
* had cohabited;
* mutually assumed marital rights, duties, and obligations; and
* held themselves out as and had acquired a uniform and general reputation as husband and wife.

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