Grandparent Visitation Rights in Illinois
Grandparent’s rights vary from state to state. In Illinois, the law attempts to balance the traditional deference to a parent’s right to make decisions regarding their children with the reality that in many family settings grandparents are taking on a more active role in rearing grandchildren, often out of necessity, many times due to divorce or death.
While most relationships between grandparents and grandchildren are loving and supported by the parents, there are cases where a parent objects to a relationship between their child and a grandparent. This can occur during a complicated divorce and other reasons. If this happens, there are legal options a grandparent can take to get visitation with their grandchild. Visitation can mean time alone with grandchildren without the child’s parent present. It can be for a few hours, or even overnight.
In Chicago and throughout Illinois a grandparent, great-grand-parent, or sibling, may request visitation with a minor child if a parent unreasonably denies visitation and at least one of the following exists:
- The child’s other parent is dead or missing for at least 3 months;
- One of the child’s parents is incompetent;
- A parent has been in jail for the 3 months before making the request for visitation;
- The child’s parents are divorced, legally separated or in the process of getting divorced and at least one parent does not object to the visitation;
- The child was born out of wedlock, the child’s parents are not living together, and the requesting grandparent, great-grandparent or sibling is from the child’s maternal side; or
- The child was born out of wedlock, the child’s parents are not living together and the requesting grandparent, great-grandparent or sibling is from the child’s paternal side and paternity has been established by a court.
When a grandparent requests visitation, the court will presume that the parent’s decision to deny or limit visitation is proper. This forces the grandparent to prove to the judge that the parent’s denial of visitation is harmful to the child’s mental, emotional, or physical health. If you feel you are wrongfully denied access to your grandchild, contact a Family Law attorney to learn more about your options.
If you have a grandchild in Illinois and want to read more, we addresses Grandparent’s roles in last week’s blog. Subscribe to my blog Divorce Lawyers Chicago now so you will automatically receive it and other useful and interesting information.
