Guardianship of Minors

In order to establish legal guardianship, custody, or visitation rights over the objection of a legal parent, you must petition and prove to the Court that the child’s legal parent does not act in the child’s best interest.

Child guardianship, custody and visitation in both Oregon and Washington is not exclusive to birth, or adoptive, parents. Both laws allow children to continue to enjoy contact with step-parents, grandparents, and others who have played a significant child-rearing role, but who no longer live with them, sometimes even if the child’s legal parent does not agree. Visitation rights extend to both heterosexual and same-sex couples who may not have been married, who now live separately, but who were both important to the life of a child in their home. Biological parentage, blood relationship, and/or legal adoption is not required in order to claim visitation rights.

Washington courts also recognize  “de facto parentage,” giving parental rights to a non-parent who, with the consent of the legal parent, and sharing the same household, has committed to a permanent parental role long enough to bond with the child and establish a parental relationship.

With the help of an attorney, any person can explore the possibility of establishing rights under Oregon and Washington law. If they have established a personal relationship of “interaction, companionship, interplay and mutuality” with the child which has lasted continuously for a year or more, they may be able to assert visitation rights. If they have provided for the child’s physical needs and for the child’s psychological needs for parenting continuously and recently in such a relationship, they may be able to assert custody rights.

A step-parent who is divorcing the child’s legal parent has additional rights within the dissolution proceeding. The court will determine whether the proven facts allow the court to overrule the choices of a legal parent, and if so, who should be awarded responsibility for the child’s custody, and what visitation with others will be best for the child. These cases should be discussed and prepared with the help of a family law attorney who is familiar with the law.