My ex-husband and I have joint legal and physical custody of our 7 yr old daughter. Her primary residence is with me and he has a visitation schedule with her. In Sept he married a women who my daughter had met twice. He recently joined the army with a four year contract and is leaving in a month. He thinks his wife can legally keep his visitation schedule with our daughter. Can she? Does she have any legal rights to our daughter? Do I have to let her have visitation?
Answer
The simple answer is -- no. The right to parenting time extends to your former husband. His second wife does not have any right to parenting time, and is not subject to the court's jurisdiction. Parenting rights cannot be "passed" to someone else, although this is not a reason to deny him parenting time if he is absent for a short period of time during a normal visit. Most judges would allow his new wife to pick up your daughter if he was unavailable, for example, and would not expect him to remain home 24 hours a day during his parenting time. No judge would require him to return your daughter if he went to the grocery store and left your daughter with his new wife -- assuming she is an otherwise "normal" individual. But that being said, most judges would not require you to follow the schedule if he is not going to be home for an extended period of time.
Answer
Prior post contains certain incorrect/misleading assertions. First your former spouse's time with his/her child is parenting time, not 'visiting time/visitation'. A former spouse's new spouse would not be subject to the existing court order. Should your personal issues be troublesome or worrysome, I urge you to confer privately with an experienced attorney so she may assist you at this time. Tricia Dwyer Esq phone 612-296-9666 Tricia Dwyer Esq & Assoc PLLC Minnesota Family Law Attorneys
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