I'm a grandfather who has had custody of my grandchild since she was a baby. The baby has always lived with me. My daughter was 14 when she had her. When her mom found out she was pregnant, she put her out and sent her to live with me. Her mom lives in another county. After the birth, my daughter was never a real parent to the child. I bathed her, feed her, baby sat her and took her to dr appointments. When the child was 6 months, my daughter decided to she wanted to go live with her mom WITH FULL AWARENESS THAT THE BABY COULD NOT GO WITH HER (per her mom). She has been gone every since, the baby is almost 2. I let my daughter come and visit anytime she wants. My daughter is 16 now. Now my daughter's mom is threatening to file for custody. Do I have a legal ground to stand on? Nothing has changed in her mother's household since then. I am not looking to raise my grandchild forever, but at least until my daughter graduates and proves she's ready.

Were you given legal custody?

Yes, My daughter up and left on a Monday night, Tuesday morning I went to the court house and was given emergency temporary custody. The family court sent a letter to my daughter's mom on behalf of my daughter to dispute change of guardianship. The letter was sent certified which was signed for. No one showed up in court to plea their case. Custody was awarded to me at that point.

That's good! Family Courts are reluctant to upset the status quo unless there is good reason to. They are unlikely to pull a child that is being well cared for from the only home she's known. Plus there was clearly a decision on the your ex's part to not accept custody.

While no one can predict what a court will do, I think the odds are in your favor. However, it is possible that they will get some visitation. I gather they live far enough away so overnights are needed. I believe the court will allow that if they go for it.