Campbell v. Campbell

896 P.2d 635 (Utah Ct. App. 1995) ; Clearinghouse Number: 50771

Description

Utah Court of Appeals Upholds State’s Grandparent Visitation Statute

Abstract

The Utah Court of Appeals has upheld the constitutionality of Utah’s grandparent visitation statute. Appellant grandparents had sought formal visitation rights with their five grandchildren. Finding that the parent-child relationship is the primary relationship that should be enhanced and questioning whether it had discretion to award grandparent visitation despite the statute’s language, the trial court granted grandparents only those minimal visitation rights which mother had previously agreed were appropriate. On appeal, grandparents challenged the adequacy of the trial court’s findings and claimed that the court’s analysis and resulting order were skewed by its view that the state’s grandparent visitation statute was unconstitutional. The appellate court held that the statute, which provides that courts “may grant grandparents and other immediate family members reasonable rights of visitation if it is in the best interests of the children,” is constitutional. Although acknowledging that court-ordered grandparent visitation necessarily interferes with parental authority and may erode the fundamental autonomous relationship between parent and child, the court held that the visitation rights authorized for grandparents under the statute do not substantially infringe upon parents’ fundamental rights or the autonomy of the nuclear family. The court noted that, under this statute, a court may not grant visitation until an action is filed in court, a hearing is conducted, and detailed findings of fact and conclusions of law are entered explicitly demonstrating that the best interests of the children will be served by granting visitation. The court found that such judicial oversight adequately protected the integrity of the family while promoting the welfare of the children. The court held that the trial court erred as a matter of law by failing to apply the best-interests-of-the-children standard. Concluding that the court’s findings of fact were not sufficiently detailed to permit appellate review, the appellate court remanded the action.

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Docket Date
1995-05-18 00:00:00+00:00

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