Grandparent Visitation

In the case of Craven v. McCrillis, 16 Vt.L.W.70 (2005), the Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the family court's denial of the grandmother's petition for visitation with her granddaughter. After the death of the child's mother, who had custody of the child, the father assumed sole physical and legal rights for the child. Although the maternal grandmother had a close relationship with the child, the father decided not to allow any further visits. The Grandmother filed an action for grandparent visitation pursuant to 15 V.S.A. Section 1012, and offered evidence that the father was a bad parent. In affirming the family court's denial of the petition, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that it had set a high standard for these petitions to minimize the risk that a court will substitute its judgment for that of the parent simply because the court disagrees with the parent's decision. "Courts are not at liberty to substitute their judgment for that of a bad parent; we can substitute our judgment only for that of an unfit parent."

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