- The wishes and concerns of the child’s parents
- The child’s age
- The child’s adjustment to home, school, and community
- The prior interaction and interrelationships of the child with parents and other relatives
- The location of the grandparent’s residence and the distance from the child’s residence;
- The childs’ and parents’ available time
- The wishes of the child (if the court has interviewed the child)
- The health and safety of the child
- The amount of time that a child has available to spend with siblings
- The mental and physical health of all parties
- Whether the person seeking visitation has been convicted of or plead guilty to any criminal offense involving an act that resulted in a child being abused or neglected.
Grandparent custody right FAQs
If my son/daughter is divorced or going through a divorce, do I have visitation rights to see my grandchild?
Ohio law provides a grandparent with certain visitation rights with their grandchildren. A grandparent can file a motion with the court in a divorce, dissolution, legal separation or annulment for grandparent visitation rights. After hearing, the court will grant grandparents their own individual visitation rights involving a child if the person has an interest in the welfare of the child and if the court determines that the granting of the companionship for visitation rights is in the best interest of the child.
If my son/daughter is deceased, do I have visitation rights to see my grandchild?
The short answer is yes. Grandparents of a deceased parent can receive visitation rights. Ohio law states that if either the father or mother of an unmarried child is deceased the grandparents have the right to ask for visitation. The court will decide if it’s in the best interest of the child.
What if the parents of my grandchild were never married?
Yes, Ohio law provides visitation rights to a grandparent when the child’s mother is unmarried. The law says if a child is born to an unmarried woman, the grandparents have a right to request visitation rights. This includes both the biological father’s parents and mother’s parents. The court will determine what is in the best interest of the child with respect to any request.
What can be done if my grandchild is removed from the jurisdiction?
Any visitation request needs to be made in the Ohio County where the child lives. The only exception would be if a case had already been initiated in another county, then that county would retain jurisdiction.
What if my grandchild does not want to visit me?
It is up to the court to make a determination on this issue.
Do I have any financial liability if my grandchild visits me?
No. Child support is strictly between the biological parents.
If my grandchild is injured during a visit with me, can I get medical care for them during that visit?
Yes. If there is a court order allowing visitation and should the child need emergency medical care while under the care of a grandparent, they would be allowed to obtain medical treatment for the child while in their care.
Can I obtain legal custody of my grandchild?
It depends. In certain circumstances, Ohio law does allow a grandparent to obtain legal custody.
The court would need to determine the biological parents to be unfit.
The definition of unfit in Ohio generally means habitual drunkenness, habitual drug abuse, abandonment and other such issues that would again require the court to make a finding of unfitness.
What if my grandchild doesn’t live in Ohio?
The state of the child’s residence is considered their “home state”, and that state would have jurisdiction as to whether or not visitation rights would be granted. Each state has different laws as pertains to visitation rights and the state with jurisdiction would need to be contacted in order to ascertain what if any rights the grandparent has in that particular state.
What if my grandchild already lives with me?
The law provides a solution for the situation where a child is living with the grandparent and the parents of the child can’t be found. Although, this is only a temporary solution and is not the same as legal custody, it does allow a grandparent to do what’s necessary for the child such as, enrolling the child in school, taking the child to the doctor, etc.
The law states that if a child is living with a grandparent who has made reasonable attempts to locate and contact both of the child’s parents, guardians, or custodians but has been unable to do so, the grandparent may then obtain the authority to exercise care and physical custody by executing a caretaker authorization affidavit.
The more common scenario is when grandparents are raising their grandchild or grandchildren with the knowledge and consent of the biological parents. Ohio law provides that in certain circumstances a parent may give a grandparent a Power of Attorney to enroll the child in school, care for the child’s medical needs, etc. This is similar to the caretaker affidavit, however, the parent is present and willing to execute a power of attorney.
Furthermore, the affidavit must be executed by both parents if they’re married and living together, if the child is subject to a shared parenting order or if the child is subject to a custody order.
