Third Party Custody and Visitation Rights

ORS 109.119 provides an avenue for third parties to ask for rights to custody or visitation with children. We often have cases where Grandparents have been very involved with their grandchildren and then for one reason or another, the Father and/or Mother no longer will allow the Grandparents to see the children. We have had several cases where the parent has passed away and the remaining parent limits or stops all contact between the Grandparents and the children. We have also had many cases where the Grandparents had taken on a parental role and were raising their grandchildren due to a parenting deficiency whether It was an addiction or mental health issue. These cases do not always involve Grandparents but have involved Aunts and Uncles and Stepparents who have strong ties to the children and they are suddenly not allowed to see them anymore, or who need to step in because the parent is unable to care for the children. From a parent’s perspective, we often help parents enforce their decision to limit contact between their children and a third party when that contact is detrimental to the child. We understand how emotional and difficult this issue can be for all parties and we have experience helping our clients to a solution that is best for the children.