Florida Stature 752.011 governs grandparents’ visitation with a minor child. A grandparent can petition the court for visitation under this section…but only in very specific circumstances.
A grandparent of a minor child whose parents are deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state, or whose one parent is deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state and whose other parent has been convicted of a felony or an offense of violence evincing behavior that poses a substantial threat of harm to the minor child’s health or welfare, may petition the court for court-ordered visitation with the grandchild under this section.
What this means is that if one parent is functioning and not a violent felon the grandparents don’t get visitation.
If your family did meet these criteria a motion would need to be filed and a hearing set. Even if a hearing is set the Judge still has to consider if the parent is unfit, if visitation with grandparents is in the child’s best interest and if there will be any harm to the child’s relationship with their parent if visitation is granted.
This is a complicated and delicate issue. It’s important that you have help from knowledgeable attorneys. Call Dunham and Ingram today to see how we can help you.