Grandparents in Michigan

Under the statutes, Michigan law may allow you to request visitation rights with your grandchild if you meet certain criteria.

Criteria include, but are not limited to:

• An action for divorce, separate maintenance, or annulment involving the child's parents is pending before the court.
• The child's parents are divorced, separated under a judgment of separate maintenance, or have had their marriage annulled.
• The child's parent who is a child of the grandparents is deceased.
• The child's parents have never been married, they are not residing in the same household, and paternity has been established by 
  • the completion of an acknowledgment of parentage under the acknowledgment of parentage act, 1996 PA 305, MCL 722.1001 to 722.1013, 
  • by an order of filiation entered under the paternity act, 1956 PA 205, MCL 722.711 to 722.730, 
  • or by a determination by a court of competent jurisdiction that the individual is the father of the child.
• Legal custody of the child has been given to a person other than the child's parent, or the child is placed outside of and does not reside in the home of a parent (Except as otherwise provided in subsection 13).

If you are requesting visitation rights, the court may need to know answers to questions such as:

• Is the visitation time in the best interest of your grandchild?
• Is there a prior relationship between you and your grandchild?
• Are there emotional ties between you and your grandchild?
  
  

If you’d like to review the law and learn more, visit the Michigan Legislature page, Child Custody Act of 1970.