Hi all -
I'm trying to determine if there's any course of action available in an odd FD situation.
Child was born in September 2014. Father and Mother of the child are unmarried. Both parents are in mid-twenties and when the child was born, each was still living with his and her parents (the Child's grandparents).
Mother's home is not a good situation and she took very poor care of the child for the first three months. She also refused Father to take the child for parenting time, even for a few hours, until December 2014.
In December 2014 Mother moved into Father's parent's home (the child's paternal grandparents). Father works full time. Mother doesn't work. Paternal Grandma has been primary caretaker during the day because Mother doesn't wake up until late afternoon, and then is out all hours of the night.
Grandparents and Father want her out of the house, but do not want to lose the child. It's unclear whether the Father and Grandparents are actually going to kick her out in the near future.
Is there any type of relief available to the Father to solidify his custody rights at this point? Would a judge entertain a motion, say, to declare Father parent of primary residence in the event the parties split and/or Mother is removed from the home? Or is the case not ripe until Mother is no longer primarily living with Father? In which event, the Grandparents would have to somehow evict Mother. I do not believe the grandparents would have much success in court if they asked for any sort of relief or custody rights, although in reality they are primarily paying and caring for the child. Mediation is not an option with these people.
Any input or ideas are appreciated. Please respond privately.
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Andrew Fischer Esq.
Freehold, NJ
(732) 865-6653
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