Grandparents’ Rights Attorney in Oakland County

Who May Seek Grandparenting Time Under Michigan Law

The Michigan Child Custody Act permits a grandparent to seek grandparenting time only in specified circumstances. MCL 722.27b doesn’t give grandparents automatic visitation rights. Meeting an eligibility condition also doesn’t ensure that a court will grant the request.

Michigan law may permit a request when:

• A divorce, separate-maintenance, or annulment case involving the child’s parents is pending or has concluded
• The grandparent’s child, who was the child’s parent, has died
• The child’s unmarried parents live apart and paternity has been legally established
• Someone other than a parent has legal custody, or the child has been placed outside a parent’s home
• The grandparent provided an established custodial environment during the preceding year

An established custodial environment is a relationship in which a child naturally looks to a caregiver for guidance, discipline, necessities, and comfort. Determining whether a statutory condition applies requires a careful review of the family history, living arrangements, and existing court orders.

How Courts Evaluate Harm & the Child’s Best Interests

Michigan’s parental presumption gives weight to a fit parent’s decision about a grandparent’s contact with a child. A grandparent generally must present evidence addressing whether denial of contact creates a substantial risk of harm to the child’s mental, physical, or emotional health.

If that threshold is met, the court considers the best interests of the child. The focus remains on the child’s welfare and the evidence presented, not on treating the grandparent relationship as an automatic legal entitlement.

Relevant considerations can include:

• The emotional bond between the grandparent and child
• The length and quality of their prior relationship
• The child’s preference when age and maturity make it appropriate
• The grandparent’s physical and mental health
• Hostility between the adults and its effect on the child
• The grandparent’s support for the child’s relationship with a parent
• Any history of abuse or neglect

When Third-Party Custody May Be the Relevant Path

Third-party custody is distinct from a request for continued contact. Under MCL 722.26c, standing means having the legal authority to bring a case, and the requirements are limited for nonparents seeking to start an original custody action.

One possible route concerns a prospective adoptive placement that remains in effect after the child has lived with the third person for at least six months. Another may apply when the biological parents were never married, the custodial parent has died or is missing, the other parent hasn’t received legal custody by court order, and the third person is related to the child within the fifth degree by blood, marriage, or adoption.

These requirements are fact-specific. Third-party custody, legal guardianship, and grandparenting time involve different legal standards and aren’t interchangeable.

What We Review Before Recommending a Legal Strategy

We begin by identifying the relief you’re seeking and the legal relationships among the child, parents, and grandparent. Court jurisdiction, existing custody proceedings, and the grandparent’s prior caregiving role can all shape the available options.

Useful information may include:

• Existing custody, parenting-time, guardianship, or support orders
• The parents’ marital history and any paternity determination
• The child’s current living arrangement
• A timeline of the grandparent’s caregiving role and contact
• Communications concerning restricted or denied contact
• School or medical records when legally relevant and available

Depending on the case, the next step may involve negotiation, alternative dispute resolution, a motion, an original complaint, an evidentiary hearing, or contested litigation. Filing, notice, and hearing requirements depend on the legal theory, court jurisdiction, and individual facts.

Choose the Legal Path That Fits Your Family

We can review your family history, existing orders, and relationship with your grandchild to determine whether negotiation, a grandparenting-time request, third-party custody, or another approach warrants consideration. Our personalized, solution-focused counsel combines clear legal guidance with an understanding of the family relationships at stake.

Bring any relevant court orders, communication records, and a timeline of your caregiving role to your consultation. These details can help us identify the legal threshold and evidence most relevant to your circumstances.

Call (248) 773-3317 to schedule your free consultation with Lady4Justice, PLLC.