Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

Child not wanting visitation with other parent

My five year old granddaughter does not want to visit her father overnight. Her father is very antagonistic toward her mother and the child gets bombarded with questions when she goes to visit him. She is asthmatic and contrary to her mothers wishes he and his wife smoke in the childs presence. At one point (after visiting the doctor a few days before with the asthma problem) she was burned by falling cigarette ashes while sitting on the lap of her step-mothers father. Two weeks later the police had to be called to the house of her father because his in-laws were drinking in the presence of the child. They called my daughter (the childs mother) and began making threats against her. The police arrived and assured my daughter that the child was ok. My daughter expressed to my granchilds father that she was not comfortable with the child visiting his house when his in-laws were there. This caused another ugly confrontation. This type of behavior is very disturbing to the child. Is there any way that we can legally get his visitation rights taken away. My daughter will be getting married in October and her future husband has expressed a desire to adopt my grandchild after they are married. What can they do?


Asked on 6/09/05, 8:33 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: Child not wanting visitation with other parent

What you've proposed is a very serious matter, i.e severing the father's right to visit his child and thereby depriving him of an important parental right. I would suggest that much more

would be needed in terms of legal justification for such an action than what you've described here in your question before any J&DRDC judge would ever even consider this type of drastic remedy.

I would also further suggest that it might be very well for all concerned with this matter if grandma found other, more productive things with which to occupy her time.

Read more
Answered on 6/10/05, 5:03 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Family Law, Divorce, Child Custody and Adoption questions and answers in Virginia