Grandparent Custody and Transfer to a Parent

When a grandparent cares for and has custody of a child due to the parent's inability or unavailability, will the court award custody of that child back to the parent, upon the parent's request?

In Jordan v. Jackson, 2005 PA Super 208 (June 2005), the Superior Court faced a case in which the grandparents had cared for the child due to the death of the Father and Mother's criminal behavior and addiction to drugs. Mother eventually reformed her behavior and requested custody of her child. After home evaluations and a hearing, the trial court ultimately awarded custody back to Mother. Grandparents appealed but were unsuccessful. The Superior Court stressed that these decisions are made "in the best interest of the child" and after considering all of the factors, there was not enough evidence to prevent mother from regaining custody. The Superior Court also commented that Mother had demonstrated sufficient redemption so that she should be given the opportunity to exercise her right as a parent.