subject: Sandra Bullock's Relationship Trouble Brings Up The Rights Of Step Mothers [print this page] Americas sweetheart and Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock reportedly is having marriage trouble because of her husband Jesse James admission of infidelity. I am sure this story will be covered widely for many more weeks to come.
What is interesting to me is her rights to her step children, if we assume that she wants to have a relationship with them. She has helped her husband Jesse James case for child custody for having provided a stable home for the children, and Divorce Magazine has written about how Sandra Bullock relishes her role as a mother to her step children.
Interestingly, in her recent Oscar acceptance speech for her role in the movie Blind Side, she said the award is for the moms that take care of the babies and children no matter where they come from. These moms and parents never get thanks. I have to think that she included herself and her step children in that message.
I believe the law as it stands does not favor step parents. That the biological parents rights would allow them to determine whether a step parent can get to be with the step children. Its complicated, thats for sure. In some ways, step parents are like grand parents, they are very much on the fringe in situations like these, no matter how much time, money and love has been put into raising the children. And, may I add that some step parents choose to have the step children as their children, while some biological parents didnt.
What is in the best interst of the children get more and more difficult to determine as parents go through mulitple divorces. How many sets of parents and grand parents can a child have and spend quality time with? And how often would these children be split up because they have different fathers. How many people have to be brought to the negotiation table to settle cases like this. And, are our divorce court lawyers, judges, fianncial dvisorsequipped to deal with this? I dont envy any one of them involved in cases like this.
