Legal Question in Family Law in California
grandparent visitation
Our Navy son, residing in another state, is divorcing. The mother of his child resides in CA. Visitation rights have not been established at this time. Can we, as grandparents, assume his visitation privileges if he cannot fulfill them due to being stationed at such a location as to prevent his fulfilling them? Or can we establish grandparent visitation rights?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: grandparent visitation
Dear Inquirer:
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NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --
Grand-parent visitation is difficult if not impossible to establish through the court unless your son is deceased and you have a signifcant prior relationship with the child. On the other hand, your son can "place" the children with whomever he wishes during his visitation time. Best to work out a voluntary arrangement between you, dad, and mom. Court-ordered visitation in this case may be tricky to get and hard to enforce.
Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry with us on LawGuru, and good luck with your case.
Re: grandparent visitation
Grandparents can request visitation. However, the state of the law regarding grandparent visitation is unsettled. Your best approach is probably to approach mom and request contact with the grandchild. Use the courts only if necessary. Your son could also talk to her and request that she allow you to exercise some or all of his visitation rights. Maintaining a good relationship with mom is your best bet.