Dear Lynn,
I’m sorry to hear that your relationship has broken down between you and your son and his wife. It’s unfortunate that they are withholding your grandchildren from you. Under Minnesota law, grandparents do not have automatic rights to see minor grandchildren (less than 18 years of age). In some circumstances, a grandparent can establish those rights by court order. Without such a court order, the parents decide who the minor children associate with.
I strongly suggest that you make an honest and diligent effort to patch things up between you and the parents before resorting to court-ordered remedies. If you resolve whatever differences you have with your son and his wife, they may allow you to see the grandchildren again. If you don’t, and you drag your son and wife into court, you will create bad feelings that will perhaps never fade. That said, Minnesota Statutes Section 257C.08 allows a person, including a grandparent, to bring an action for court-ordered visitation of a minor child if one of the following four facts is present: 1) A parent is deceased. If so, the other parent and grandparents of the deceased parent may seek visitation. 2) Family court is already involved with the family. For example, the parents have had or started a divorce, custody, or parentage proceeding. 3) The grandchild lived with grandparents or great-grandparents for a period of 12 months or more, and was then removed from the home by the minor’s parents. 4) If a minor has resided in a household with a person, other than a foster parent, for two years or more, no longer resides with the person, and emotional ties created a parent and child relationship between them.
Please note: There are different rules within this law dealing with children that had been adopted.
If one of the four facts is present, the court will consider the grandparent’s petition for visitation. The court will then look at whether the grandparent visitation would be in the best interests of the child, whether it would interfere with the parent-child relationship, and how much personal contact the petitioner has had with the child prior to the petition for visitation. In addition, the court also has to consider jurisdictional requirements, including how much time the child and the parties have lived in Minnesota.
I am not aware of any forms you can use to start your own petition for courtordered visitation. That means you’ll probably have to seek advice and representation of an attorney. Generally, the Senior Citizens’ Law Project does not have resources to represent people in such matters unless the health or safety of the minor child is in immediate jeopardy. If you observe abuse or neglect, you can call the county and request Children In Need of Protection or Services (CHIPS) involvement. Many private family law attorneys are available to discuss these matters and may represent you in a visitation case. Before resorting to court, I again suggest that you first try to resolve your disagreement with your son and wife.
