What remedies do grandparents have who have lost their child, and the other parent refuses to allow them any further contact with their grandchildren?
Until recently, the burden of proof was on the grandparent to prove that denying visitation would harm the child(ren).
This was frequently a costly and difficult hurdle to overcome; which usually required an expert to testify regarding the necessity of visitation. The outcome of these case was too often devastating to grandparent visitation rights in Virginia.
New Virginia Code on Grandparent Visitation Rights
Virginia Code §20-124.2 B2 now provides that if a grandparent has petitioned the court for visitation with a minor grandchild, the grandparent who is related to such deceased or incapacitated parent shall be permitted to introduce evidence of such parent’s consent to visitation of the child with the grandparent.
Best Interests of the Children
What this means is that grandparents must first prove that their child wanted them to have visitation with the minor grandchildren and then, that it is in the best interest of the grandchildren to have visitation with them. This is a much easier burden to meet than the previous standard of harm.
Grandparent Visitation Rights Lawyer in Virginia
Having represented several grandparents in these types of visitation cases, this is a welcome change. For more information, contact Cook Craig & Francuzenko today.
