While a child loses a parent to death it can create a void in his young life. Arizona children who have had to endure this unbearable hardship may have also experienced the sometimes intentional but often resulting loss of connection with their deceased parents’ extended family members as well. In some situations, a child may grow apart from this deceased biological parent’s parents after the passing of time.
When a parent dies some grandparents, being those who were the parents to the deceased party, may have rights to pursue visitation with their grandchildren under Arizona law. Third parties like grandparents may pursue visitation if such visitation would be in the best interests of the child and if, as discussed in this post, the child’s parent has passed away.
In addition to the death of a biological parent a grandparent may pursue visitation with his grandchild if the biological parent has gone missing. The parent must have been missing for at least three months prior to the petition for grandparent visitation and the missing parent’s absence must have been reported to local authorities.
There are other circumstances that can give rise to grandparents’ rights to visitation with their grandkids, and individuals who have specific questions about this area of law are asked to speak with their family law attorneys. Every case regarding grandparent visitation is different and the facts of each case will dictate if a court determines that the requested visitation will serve the child’s interests. This post is intended to provide readers with a general introduction to a complex area of family law and should not be read or interpreted as legal advice.