Estes v. Long

How courts have described this case

Verbatim parenthetical descriptions written by other courts when citing this decision. Ranked by citation-network relevance.

• holding that grandparent may petition for visitation only when meaningful relationship has formed without a traditional nuclear family
• concluding that parental rights “have been found to operate against the State, against third parties and against the child” (citation omitted)
• noting that “[psychiatrists and psychologists unanimously counsel that children should maintain and retain meaningful relationships and that to deny them continuing contacts is a deprivation” (quotation and ellipses omitted)
• the court, as an instrument of the state, may use its parens patriae power to decide whether the welfare of the child warrants court ordered visitation
• shortsighted to consider child’s interest by granting grandparents visitation upon divorce, but not where traditional two parent family never existed
• court may use its parens patriae power to decide whether welfare of child warrants court-ordered visitation with grandparents

Source: CourtListener parenthetical corpus (CC0).