I have had my grandson ( four years old) now for 63 days with no contact from the mother. I have custody of my 5 year old grandaughter already. The circumstances where different at the time of my grandsons birth so I couldn't file for him at the time like I had filed for her. My son is in a treatment facility and will be there for at least 4 more months. I have went to the court and got a power of attorny for him with my son's consent to take him to the doctors. I heard that if I have him for 90 days with no contact from the mother that I can get full custody for abandonment. Is this true? I feel it is in my grandson's best interest to stay with me. I will be enrolling him in preschool next month. Also I took him to his Dr's last week and he has not been there in 3 years(since he was one). He is very far behind on his immunization shots and has not had a check up. What are my rights?

First honestly while they may let you, legally you can't put him in school or take him to the doctor, since you don't have the legal authority to do so.

Do you know where the mother of the children are ?

Where is the bio father at, ( since he would have rights also)

But no it does not mean you will get full custody, but you will have to file for it in court and use it.

The child may have been abandoned by its mother, but not its father. You can apply for temporary guardianship so you can care for the child, but custody is another matter. If your son fights you, you may have a problem. I doubt if a court would hear a custody issue until he is out of treatment.

I have my son's consent to file - he knows until he is better that the best thing for his children is to be with me. What is the difference between temp gardianship and temp custody?

1- I have a signed power of attorney from the father to have him treated and to put him in school ~ is that not a legal authority? I will be enrolling him in another week.
2- I do not know where the mother is ~ has always moved from place to place and has always used private or blocked numbers to call me. She dropped him off with nothing but the clothes on his back for a day ( yea right). Has not been back nor even called my house to inquire about him!
3- the father ( my son) is in a treatment program and is willing to give me custody.

First, please use the Answer options for followups, not the Comments.

A POA can be conveyed by a person to care for that person. A POA may cover a minor child if BOTH parents sign it.

Guardianship is usually easier to get because its not as permanent. It depends on the local courts. Without the mother's consent, temporary guardianship is probably all you can get.

Scottgem - So I am assuming that you are an attorney - I went to the court and picked up a power of attorney for an absent parent. They said that as long as I had my son sign and notorize the form it would give me the ability to have him treated and entered into school. The Mother is an ABSENT parent.
So what you are saying is that even though it was signed and notorized by the father and filed with the court it is not legal?
I feel like I am stuck on what to do ~ I want the best for him~ He has been having some health issues and this has allowed him to be treated. I would also love to get him into some time of preschool ~ he is VERY far behind for his age. He could not even count to 5 when he was dropped off at my home.Nor does he now the ABC song. I know seems petty but I feel strongly on this matter. Also he had not been for ANY check ups since the age of one! Possible could have some deformity in his legs. Never been look at. This also is very upsetting to me - that it couls of been corrected early!!
What is a person in my place to do??

OH - also not sure why I can't use the comment button when I was commenting on your post? Can you explain this to me ~ as I have never used this forum before. Thanks!

First, no I'm not an attorney. But you don't have to have a law degree or pass the bar to be able to research and understand the law.

And yes, the form you have will stand up temporarily, if not challenged. But lets take this scenario. The mother shows up and goes to the doctor and threatens to sue him and you for treating the child without permission. You might win in court by showing she was absent, but it could get ugly and expensive. Such that a doctor might not accept the POA.

And let me say I admire and respect you for stepping up and taking care of the child. That's why I'm trying to make sure you are aware of the ramifications.

As for the Comments feature. It was really intended for something other than followups. If you want to ask a follow-up question or provide additional info, it help us help you more if you do it as an Answer to the thread.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

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And yes, the form you have will stand up temporarily, if not challenged. But lets take this scenario. The mother shows up and goes to the doctor and threatens to sue him and you for treating the child without permission. You might win in court by showing she was absent, but it could get ugly and expensive. Such that a doctor might not accept the POA.
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Said hypothetical doctor would have been misinformed. A consent to treatment by a parent-delegate, with a duly completed POA supplied by the court system for that very purpose, and signed by one custodial parent, is totally sufficient to protect the doctor.

Let's modify the scenario, shall we? The father brings the chld to the doctor. He shows the doctor proof that he is the father (birth certificate), and assures the doctor that he has shared (at least) legal custody. The doctor treats the child. I don't believe the doctor can be successfully sued. The only difference between my scenario and yours is that the father is not there in person but instead is acting through a POA.

But you are assuming a) the form is supplied and approved by the court system and b) the mother can prove she wasn't absent.

I did say a suit would probably not be successful, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't cost to fight it. Nor would it be that the doctor was misinformed, but rather just CYA. Many people are aware of how litigious our society is and many will shy away from a situation where litigation is a possibility.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

But you are assuming a) the form is supplied and approved by the court system ...

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Yes, that's exactly what I'm assuming, because I believe that's what the OP said or fairly implied.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

... and b) the mother can prove she wasn't absent. ...

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I don't follow you there. You are saying that I'm assuming the mother can prove something about her whereabouts? What does it matter where the mother was? If I take my child to a medical provider I can authorize treatment no matter where my child's mother is:

• in the same room,
• outside, parking the car, or
• on the moon.

If it was the parents that is one thing. But its not. It's a third party claiming that she has the right to seek care for the child. I'm just playing devil's advocate in pointing out potential drawbacks.

I would like to thank you for your answers but - what I have said in my statements have been true - that being said lets not assume that what I am saying is not what it is. It would make this less confusing! The mother is absent - the POA was from my county court - it is notorized by the father. It states that the mother is an absent parent.
Since I have my son's concent, what is your opinion in my chances of filing for an emergency custody order and getting him? Not sure if I mentioned it but my home state is Ohio. Thanks!

First, no one is saying what you said is not true, we are just pointing out potential consequences.

Second, I don't think you can get custody at this point, but you should get temp guardianship. And that's what you should be going for. In most state guardianship requires less of a proof of parental absence etc. Essentially you just have to show that the parents are not caring for the child and that you are willing to do so.

By the way, the document was NOT "notarized by the father" A notary cannot witness their own signature and I'm assuming your son is not a notary. I think you meant to say it has my son's notarized signature.