Grandparents and Access
Some of the hardest and most emotional cases in family law deal with grandparents and access. More specifically, the issue of whether grandparents should have access to their grandchildren. It is to be noted that in a general sense, grandparents usually do not have independent rights of contact or access, which are exercisable in favour of their grandchildren.
Very often, the result of this type of litigation dealing with grandparents and access leaves the grandparents involved unsuccessful.
The case of Nichols v. Herdman dealt with an application made by grandparents seeking access to their grandchild. As is commonly the case, there were external factors that affected the relationship between mother and grandmother, and that led to a grandchild being unable to build a relationship with her grandparents.
In Court, Justice Stevenson reiterated the notion that only the parents of the child have rights of access, unless the grandparents can satisfy a three-step test. The test is set out below.
The response to the following questions must be answered in the affirmative:
- Does a positive grandparent-grandchild relationship already exist?
- Has the parent's decision imperilled the positive grandparent-grandchild relationship?
- Has the parent acted arbitrarily?
To learn more about grandparent and access in Ontario family law as well as the services provided by Krol & Krol, call 905.707.3370 today.
