Either through a sibling passing or being unfit to care for their own children, you may be obtaining custody of your niece or nephew. This is a sad and stressful situation that can be life-altering.
It’s very difficult for a non-parent to obtain custody of a child who is not their biological relation. That is because the laws of this state give very clear preference to biological parents. Therefore, if you are looking to gain custody of a child who is not your biological child, including your niece, step-daughter, granddaughter, or any child you are not an immediate blood relative to, you would need to petition the family court for custody and in that petition allege extraordinary circumstances. Extraordinary circumstances are a very hard standard to meet and I recommend consulting and working with an attorney in filing this sort of a petition. The sorts of facts that can sometimes aid in this sort of argument are the abandonment of the biological parent of the child in question, the unfitness of the biological parent, persistent neglect of the child by the biological parent, or general unfitness.
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If you are obtaining custody of your niece/ nephew, please call our experienced New York family law attorney Jean Mahserjian, Esq. today. She has handled dozens of clients with cases just like yours and will be dedicated to providing you dependable and fierce representation.
Jean M. Mahserjian, Esq., is a New York family law and divorce attorney in Albany, Saratoga, and the surrounding areas. For more than 20 years, Jean has maintained her capital region law firm, located on Route 9 in Clifton Park, New York. The practice encompasses all areas of family and matrimonial law, an online uncontested divorce service and various areas of estate planning.
