What do you do when the parents of your grandchildren will not or cannot grant you time to visit with your grandchildren? The relationship between a grandparent and their grandchild is an important one. In Ohio, the law allows grandparents to establish this time with their grandchildren in certain cases through a court order.
What is Grandparent Visitation?
Grandparent visitation is defined under Ohio law, which states that in a divorce, dissolution of marriage, legal separation, annulment, or child support proceeding that involves a child, the court may grant reasonable companionship or visitation rights to any grandparent in certain instances. This visitation is scheduled time that the grandparent can spend with the child. A grandparent may want to establish a set schedule for visitation time in situations where they do not often or regularly see the child. This visitation can come in many different forms, such as:
- Phone/video calls – Established time for the grandparent and grandchild to talk via phone or video chat.
- Midweek visits – A time during the week when the grandparent is allowed to visit with the child for a few hours (dinner, movie, park, etc.).
- Overnight visits – The child stays with the grandparent overnight. This can be one night or even a full weekend.
Can a Parent Prevent Visitation with Grandparents?
The ability to visit with grandchildren will be determined by the court through a test of what is in the child's best interests. A court will begin with the presumption that a fit parent is acting in the best interests of the child and will take into consideration a fit parent's wishes regarding the child. The burden of proving that it is in the child's best interests to visit with their grandparent is on the grandparent.
To determine a child's best interests, the court will look at many factors, some of which include:
- The prior interaction and interrelationships of the grandparents, parents, and children
- The geographical location of the residence of each person with visitation
- The child's and parents' available time, including, but not limited to, each parent's employment schedule, the child's school schedule, and the holiday and vacation schedules of both the child and the parents.
- The age of the child
- If the court has interviewed the child in chambers, the wishes and concerns of the child, as expressed to the court
- The health and safety of the child
- The amount of time that will be available for the child to spend with siblings
- The mental and physical health of all parties
- The wishes and concerns of the child's parents
In What Instances are Grandparents Awarded Visitation?
There are some instances where an award of visitation rights to a grandparent are most likely/common. These include:
- When the grandparent's child (the mother or father of the child whose visitation is at issue) dies – If your child dies, it can cause your access to your grandchild to be restricted or cut off. In this instance, the grandparents would move the court for more time with the children due to the restriction of historically exercised time.
- When married parents terminate their marriage –
A parent may restrict a grandparent's ability to see the
grandchild or a grandparent's time to see their grandchild may
be limited due to the results of the termination of marriage. Some
examples of this situation are where:
- A father travels extensively for work restricting his parenting time to when he is in town, but the paternal grandparents are local and desire consistent contact with the child.
- A mother is on military deployment for months at a time
restricting her parenting time to the months when she is home, but
the maternal grandparents are local and desire consistent contact
with the child.
Thus, the grandparents would move the court for more time with the children due to the restriction of historically exercised time.
- When a child is born to an unmarried mother – In this instance, the father (unless he establishes paternity) does not have rights to visitation. The paternal grandparents in turn do not either. Thus, the paternal grandparents would move the court to establish paternity of the father and visitation for themselves.
In What Instances Is Grandparent Visitation Uncommonly Awarded?
There are certain instances where awarding visitation rights to a grandparent is uncommon and unlikely. These include:
- When a child is in protective custody due to abuse, neglect, or dependency of the child – If the child is in protective custody, the court will likely not order visitation for grandparents of the child.
- Paternal grandparents of a child who does not have established paternity – As explained in the above section, if a father does not establish paternity of a child, he does not have parental or visitation rights to that child. In turn, the paternal grandparents would not have the possibility of visitation rights.
What Do I Do Next?
If you are having trouble seeing your grandchildren, you may have a claim through the courts to establish visitation.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.