GRANDPARENT RIGHTS
IN FLORIDA
By K. Dean Kantaras and Roberta Blush
Basically, grandparents do not
have visitation rights in the state
of Florida. This article explores
the history of Florida’s stance on
the legal right of grandparents to have
visitation with their grandchildren.
Grandparent rights were codified in the
Florida Statutes in 1978. In 1984, the Florida
legislature created Chapter 752, titled,
“Grandparental Visitation Rights.” Under
this chapter, an award of grandparental
visitation could be granted in four specific
circumstances: (1) when one or both of
the parents were deceased; (2) when the
marriage of the parents was dissolved;
(3) when a parent of the child has deserted
the child; or (4) when the minor child
was born out of wedlock and not later
determined to be a child born within
wedlock as provided by s. 742.091. The
1993 amendment of s. 752.01 established a
fifth “blanket” circumstance under which
grandparents could obtain visitation rights:
“when the minor child is living with both
natural parents who are still married to
each other, whether or not there is a broken
relationship between either or both parents
of the minor child and the grandparents,
and either or both parents have used their
parental authority to prohibit a relationship
between the child and the grandparents.”
It was this amendment, and the case law
that followed, that changed the course of
grandparent rights in Florida.
In Beagle, the grandparents sought
to enforce their right to visit with their
grandchild in trial court, when the parents
and child were living as an intact family.
Upon the parents’ motion to dismiss, the
LAARWT
K. Dean Kantaras, Esq.
142 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019
The Supreme Court in Beagle ultimately
found that because s. 752.01(1)(e) imposed
grandparental rights without a showing of
harm to the child, it violated the Florida
Constitution providing for a fundamental
right to privacy.
The take-away from Beagle is that a
grandparent does not have visitation rights
simply by virtue of the familial relationship
between grandparent and grandchild.
However, certain circumstances exist
where a grandparent may be awarded
visitation rights based upon a showing of
parental fitness or significant harm to the
child. As this can be a very complicated
area of family law, it is important to consult
with an attorney to determine whether
a particular set of facts falls within the
statutorily defined circumstances. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: K. Dean Kantaras is
the managing partner of K. Dean Kantaras,
P.A., a firm handling cases in family law and
immigration. Mr. Kantaras is board certified
in marital and family law by the Florida Bar.
He has been practicing for over 25 years
and is “AV” rated by Martindale-Hubbell.
Roberta “Bobbi” Blush is a graduate of the
University of Florida and Florida Coastal
School of Law, who was admitted to the
Florida Bar in 2014. Their offices are located
at 3531 Alternate 19, Palm Harbor, 34683,
(727) 781-0000 and 1930 East Bay Drive,
Largo, 33771, kantaraslaw.com.
trial court dismissed the grandparents’
petition, finding that s. 752.01(1)(e)
violated the parents’ constitutional right
to privacy. The district court of appeal
reversed, upholding the constitutionality
of s. 752.01(1)(e). The district court of
appeal relied on the holding in Sketo v.
Brown, involving the portion of the statute
that allows for grandparental visitation
where a parent is deceased.
The Florida Supreme Court determined
in 1996 that the fifth circumstance
constituted a violation of the right to
privacy enumerated in both the Florida
Constitution and the United States
Constitution. Specifically, imposing
grandparental visitation on an intact
family “infringes upon the rights of
parents to raise their children free from
government intervention.” In determining
the unconstitutionality of s. 752.01(1)(e),
the Supreme Court recognized the “…
fundamental liberty interest of parents
in determining the care and upbringing
of their children free from the heavy
hand of government paternalism.”