Family Law


Grandparents' Rights

Imagine the following scenario:

You are getting on in years and your children have grown up and married. Your son now has three children of his own and these grandchildren mean almost everything in the world to you. You see them regularly, you babysit them frequently, and you delight in watching them grow up.

Then one day you discover that your son and his wife are getting a divorce. There is a battle over custody, and your son loses. His ex-wife is forced to allow your son regular visits, but because of the bitterness the divorce has created, she will no longer let you even see your grandchildren. What is more, you begin to suspect that the children are not being properly looked after; you want to help, but you have been completely cut out of their lives.

Unfortunately, situations like this are not as uncommon as you might think. You might find it difficult at your age to put yourself into the position of grandparents in this sort of situation, but the effects can be devastating on them.


The rights of grandparents to have access to their grandchildren is a complicated area of the law, but one thing that is clear is that the Divorce Act , 1985 states that a judge can make an access order, and even a custody order, upon application by "either or both spouses or by any other person"; and "any other person" can clearly include grandparents, along with aunts, uncles, and anyone else having an interest in the child.

Despite this provision in the Divorce Act , though, grandparents have traditionally had difficulty getting access rights to their grandchildren. In fact, groups such as the Canadian Grandparents' Rights Association have been formed to promote grandparents' interests in gaining this right.

In Alberta, a bill was passed in 1997 that gave grandparents the right to try to gain legal access to their grandchildren by going to the courts.