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One Penn Center, 19th Floor
1617 John F. Kennedy Blvd.
Philadelphia, PA 19103-1895
Phone (215) 665-3000
Fax (215) 665-3165 |
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GRANDPARENT & THIRD PARTY CUSTODY RIGHTS |
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Currently in Pennsylvania Grandparents have standing to initiate custody proceedings and Grandparents occupy a favored position among third parties in custody disputes. In order for a Grandparent to prevail, s/he must meet the burden of showing that s/he (a) assumed a parental role with respect to the minor child(ren) for 12 months; (b) assumed responsibility for a child found to be dependent; or (c) s/he considers it necessary to assume responsibility for a child at risk due to parental abuse, neglect or illness.
Third parties other than Grandparents usually do not have standing to participate as parties in child custody actions but must challenge custody by way of dependency proceedings in juvenile court. An exception to this rule is when a third party stands in loco parentis to a child. "In loco parentis" means that an individual has assumed the obligations incident to a parent-child relationship without the formality of a legal adoption.
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