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Grandparent Visitation Under Virginia Law

Grandparents love nothing more than their grandchildren. But what do you do when you are a grandparent who is not allowed to see your grandchild? This situation often arises when parents are separated and the custodial parent does not get along with the non-custodial parent’s family. If you are in this situation, there may be recourse for you through the courts via a visitation order.

The standard Virginia Courts use when determining whether or not to award grandparents visitation with their grandchildren depends upon the parents’ stance on the visitation:

  • When both parents object to visitation, the court may not award visitation to the grandparents unless there a showing of actual harm to the child’s health or welfare without such visitation;
  • When the custodial parent objects and the non-custodial parent affirmatively requests the court award the grandparents visitation, the court may award visitation upon a showing that it is in the child’s best interests; and
  • When the custodial parent objects and the non-custodial parent does not voice an opinion either way, the court may not award visitation without a showing of actual harm.

If you are a grandparent who has been denied visitation with your grandchild(ren), our attorneys can help determine what factors in your situation may be used to convince the court to award you visitation under the best interests of the child and/or actual harm standards.

The custody and visitation lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients in grandparent visitation cases in Woodbridge, Fairfax, Alexandria, Arlington, Manassas, Stafford, Spotsylvania and Fredericksburg, Virginia. Contact us to schedule a consultation today.