[allboyz]

Hello, we have temporary custody of our grand daughter, she will soon be 4, our ex daughter in law wants to go to court for full custody however she has not shown much interest in the child in the past till the separation. In 2008 we have kept her 200 nights and days while mom and dad did what they wanted to do, whether it was party, picnic or just sleep. Now that they split, she made the statement that without getting child support she won't be able to manage on her own. She lives in a 3 bedroom mobile home with 3 other adults and when her daughter goes to spend time with her, she has to share the bedroom on a small bed. There have been times when the child has missed doctor appts. Because of the parents neglect, last Christmas eve we rushed her to the emergency room after our son brought her to us and the doctors weren't sure she would make it through the night. Mom was home baking and didn't want to leave to come with us. We finally called and told her how serious it was. Even now, she gets her 2 nights a week and will go 4 or 5 days without seeing her or calling and asking about her. We will soon go to court, what chance do we have of winning even partial custody? Our son said since we have pretty much raised her and she has lived here most of her life (the first 1 1/2 years they all lived with us but we were her primary caregivers) he'd like to see her stay here and is willing to hire an attorney to fight that also. What chance do we have as grandparents to continue having visiting rights with our granddaughter? We live in pa

[JudyKayTee]

This is an older site - 2005 - but very comprehensive. "Pennsylvania statutes indicate that grandparents may be granted reasonable custodial rights in the following circumstances:
a. When parent deceased: If a parent of an unmarried child is deceased, the parents or grandparents of the deceased parent may be granted reasonable partial custody or visitation rights, or both, to the child by the court if it is found that the visitation is in the child's best interest. The more contact the grandparents had with the child before the death of the parent, the more custodial time the grandparents will be given.

b. When parents' marraige is dissolved or parents are separated: After a divorce complaint has been filed by a parent or when parents have been separated for 6 months or more, the court may grant reasonable partial custody or visitation rights, or both, to the unmarried child if it is in the child's best interest AND would not interfere with the parent-child relationship. Again, the court will consider the amount of contact between the grandparents and the child previous to the petition being filed.

c. When child has resided with grandparents: If an unmarried child has resided with grandparents or great-grandparents for a period of 12 months or more and is subsequently removed from the home by the parents, the grandparents or great-grandparents may petition the court for partial custody or visitation or both. The best interests of the child will be considered and these rights will only be granted if the granting of the rights will not interfere with the parent-child relationship.
More and more, grandparents are filing for custodial rights and such petitions are being granted."

http://www.divorcenet.com/states/pennsylvania/pa_art13