GRANDMOTHER DEMONSTRATED “EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES” SUCH THAT SHE HAD STANDING TO SEEK CUSTODY OF THE CHILDREN (FOURTH DEPT.).

The Fourth Department, reversing Family Court and remitting the matter, determined that grandmother had demonstrated “extraordinary circumstances” and she therefore had standing to bring a custody petition:

The evidence here established that, in 2018, the father was arrested and incarcerated until 2022. During that time, the children resided with the mother in the grandmother’s home until October 2021, when the grandmother moved out. The father never saw the children while he was incarcerated, rarely spoke with them, and never sent them cards, letters, or gifts. When the father was released from incarceration, the mother asked him to take custody of the children, which he did starting in July or August 2022; the grandmother visited with the children on the weekends. The mother died less than a year later, and the children lived with the grandmother during the summer of 2023. In September 2023, the parties filed petitions seeking custody of the children, and the court granted the grandmother temporary custody of the children, with the father having visitation. From that time until the conclusion of the hearing in July 2024, the father did not visit with the children and rarely communicated with them.

We conclude that the cumulative effect of the father’s extended incarceration, his failure to maintain contact with the children during that time, the children’s resulting bond with the grandmother, and the father’s failure to maintain contact with the children during the pendency of the hearing, is sufficient to establish extraordinary circumstances … . Matter of Craig v Thomas, 2026 NY Slip Op 00751, Fourth Dept 2-11-26

Practice Point: Consult this decision for insight into the nature of “extraordinary circumstances” which will confer standing upon a grandparent to seek custody of the grandchildren.