Legal Question in Family Law in Arizona

Re: visitation rights for grandparents

Ultimately, she may have the right to seek court-ordered access under the Arizona Grandparent's Visitation Rights statute. Until than, she has no legal recourse. However, in order to avoid the stress and expense of Court, it may be wise to consider some mutually agreeable accord.

I can explain the procedures and law, and especially her legal rights, better by phone or in person. There is too much to cover via e'mail. We offer free 1/2 hour consultations, in which we can discuss the matter in more detail.

Please call me directly to discuss the specifics of your case, or contact my assistant Cathy to schedule a free 1/2 hour consultation. I look forward to talking with you.

/s/ Rich J. Peters, Attorney

JON C. DAKE & ASSOC., P.C.

1422 N. 2nd Street, Suite 100

Phoenix, Arizona 85004

602.254.7251

602.254-1229 (facsimile)

see our web page at www.familylawaz.com

Re: visitation rights for grandparents

Hello. Arizona does have a statute, AZ 25-409, that creates a "presumptive right" that grandparents should have time with their grandchildren in circumstances like yours. I attempted to copy the entire statute for you here, but the LawGuru format has a limit on the number of words in an answer. Part of the statute is printed below. However, you can read the entire statute at www.azleg.state.az.us.

A. The superior court may grant the grandparents of the child reasonable visitation rights to the child during his minority on a finding that the visitation rights would be in the best interests of the child and any of the following are true:

1. The marriage of the parents of the child has been dissolved for at least three months...

C. In determining the child's best interests the court shall consider all relevant factors,including...

1. The historical relationship, if any, between the child and the person seeking visitation.

2. The motivation of the requesting party in seeking visitation.

3. The motivation of the person denying visitation.

As I pointed out, the statute creates a "presumption" only, not a right. Basically that means that the court knows Arizona law prefers that grandchildren and grandparents maintain contact, but will be willing to look at all the reasons you want to prohibit visits and all the reasons your wife's ex-mother-in-law wants visitation, and make a determination that is in "the best interests of the child." It has the right to decide that visitation is in your stepchild's best interest, if circumstances suggest that.

If your wife still have some sort of communication with her ex-mother-in-law, you may wish to explore mediation. Mediation is a good process where children are involve because it minimizes conflict, and creates a respectful environment where problems can be solved without creating additional acrimony and bad feelings. This sort of problem-solving method is helpful where you want to maintain an on-going relationship, or where you want to maintain as much goodwill as possible with the other party for the sake of the children.

While mediation is a very good option, if there are unusual factors involved, you may also consider hiring a lawyer to look at the specifics of your situation, and to get advise about how your situation might play out in front of a judge. Once you have that information, you can decide whether to go to mediation or to court.

I am a mediator, and would be happy to talk with you more about the mediation option, and I can also refer you to qualified family lawyers whose work I trust, if you don't know whom to call. I hope this discussion has been helpful to you.