WA Unsigned Verbal Shared Parenting Plan and Grandparents Rights

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Gwyneth

Member
22 May 2017
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Hi, my son in law (J) and daughter (R) have been separated for 4 years. They have a 4 1/2-year-old son (M).

My daughter has moved 8 times with the recent move 100kms away from her husband (they r still married) with their son. She engages in both female and male partner relationships not lasting long. The recent relationship is shared with an 18-year-old female.

Recently (perhaps the last 8 months) my son in law, his parents, and us (the other grandparents ) have noticed the son (M for this purpose) cries almost out of control saying he does not want to go back to mums and he wants to stay with dad (J) when the handover occurs. We have observed he gets very stressed and clingy. Biting his nails to the skin.

Some issues we have observed are
  1. Severe nail biting.
  2. Afraid to eat dairy products as his mum (R) said he was lactose intolerant and he is not allowed to eat dairy. He said he will get in trouble if he eats it. I kindly asked my daughter for a medical certificate diagnosing this condition. She got very angry with me and refused to give proof.
  3. s very anxious going back to his mother's when it is time. He becomes clingy to us, asks what time it is and what day it is. He goes back Sundays at 2pm.
He was so happy and we are seeing that happy little boy become very sad inside and we are all upset.

J owns his home and M has his own room 2 dogs and a cat. J makes sure we spend time with M on a regular basis. We are also there to help J with any other parents support he needs. We live close to each other. J has not been in another relationship since the separation. J parents are involved on a regular basis through Skype and annual trips to Victoria or they come to perth.

Both grandparents are involved in M life since birth and have seen the challenges J (the father) has been going through with my daughters radical lifestyle.

radical meaning
  1. multiple partners in her and her son's life.
  2. Multiple house moves which include moving in with partners.
  3. Multiple partners my daughter makes my grandson call mummy or daddy. These partners also engage in disciplining our grandson.
  4. forgery of me and my husband's signature to sign up for products. Which we reported and confronted her about. This made her angry towards us.
  5. Forgery of my other daughters signature for similar issues.
  6. Sending our grandson to a school that is out of his district.
We have tried to be positive to my daughter (R) and all feel like we are treading on eggshells. We feel she may have mental issues and its getting worse.

We would like her to move to a reasonable distance so J does not have to drive so far to pick up and drop off. I have also encouraged a fair shared parenting. My daughter (R) consistently changes arrangements causing unnecessary stress to michael who i feel has teally been feeling it. My daughter is also threatening us (grandparents) that we can no longer see M because we are friends with J (son in law).

J and R have an unsigned verbal shared parents agreement but we now feel its time to go to court and self represent. Because R keeps changing orders and wants to control what M does when J has him on his time.

We live in WA and J's parents live in VIC. So WA family practice Law would govern decisions.

Could you please provide some advice. From what I understand (from reading many cases from both sides).
My son in law can
  1. File for mediation
  2. Submit a parenting plan (which includes grandparents visitation ) that is equal to both parties.
  3. File a recovery order for her to move closer.

Thanks for your time and effort. I really appreciate any supportive advice for everyones benefit
 

AllForHer

Well-Known Member
23 July 2014
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Okay, so, what are the current care arrangements? How often does M see each of his parents?