Introduction: 

Divorces can be incredibly difficult situations, and not just the immediate family can suffer the consequences. Unfortunately Grandparents can find themselves anxious about a potential future of not being able to see their grandchildren. 

Key takeaways:

  • Most divorces reach an agreement on grandparent visitation and resolve this issue naturally. 
  • Grandparents lack thoroughly established rights in Florida, and this makes it difficult to obtain visitation in the small subset of divorces that do not reach an agreement on visitations for grandparents. 
  • Call us if you have worries about your visitation rights for your grandchildren.  

What are Grandparent Visitation Rights in Florida after a divorce?

The good news is that in most divorces both parties understand the need for their children to be able to see their grandparents. While this happens the majority of the time, this does mean there exists a minority of cases where visitation rights do not resolve themselves. 

There is a statute that exists that speaks to some of the visitation rights of grandparents. However, Statute 752.011 truly only gives grandparents more visitation rights in the following cases:

  • Both parents are deceased, missing or in a vegetative state
  • One parent is deceased, missing or in a vegetative state and/or
  • One parent has been convicted of a felony or an offense of violence indicating behavior that poses a substantial threat or harm to the minor child’s welfare

Unfortunately, there are no clear cut rights of visitation for grandparents. This can seem daunting at first, but in most divorces an agreement is reached and grandparents are allowed to visit their grandchildren in certain capacities. 

This law is built into place to help protect parent-child relationships, and judges can rule based on how the petitioned visitations may affect this relationship. 

Summary

If you are nervous or concerned about your visitation rights as a grandparent, do not hesitate to call us or to get a free consultation. We can take the time to flesh out your specific circumstances and find out if we can do anything in your case. Call Compton and Smith, PA at 813-909-9254 now so we can find ways to help you!