Legal Question in Family Law in California

Granmother wants legal guardianship

My 23 year old friends mother has petitioned for legal guardianship of her 7 year old daughter,who has lived with Grandma since birth. Grandma is saying that my friend is an unfit mother because she is a ''known drug user''.My friend is not a user,has never been arrested and has no criminal record. She does admit to having problems when she was 19,but she has been clean since 2002.My friend has had a full time job with full benefits for over a year,has a home and is self sufficient. Her only crime is believing her Mother who told her that she would ''return'' her daughter when she (my friend) settled down.My friend visits her daughter regularly.My friend also has a 7 month old baby with a different man than the 7 year old. The welfare/custody of this child is not being challenged, which leads me to believe that Grandma just wants to be the mother to the 7 year old, not the grandmother. The only wrinkle in all of this is that the father of the 7 month old has just been sentenced to 18 months in prison for burglary,which was a violation of his probation for a drug arrest 5 years ago.Grandma is stating this and the alleged drug use are the reasons that my friend is unfit.What are the chances my friend will lose custody of her 7 year old?


Asked on 8/10/06, 1:42 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Lyle Johnson Bedi and Johnson Attorneys at Law

Re: Granmother wants legal guardianship

The fact that the child has resided with grandmother primarily for the majority of her life will be a big hurtle for mother to overcome. The boy friend being in prison will also be a problem unless she is willing to give up the boy friend. However, she needs to contact an attorney to represent her at a hearing at the guardian ship hearing.

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Answered on 8/19/06, 2:10 am


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