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HB 861 2026
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hb861-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to grandparent visitation rights; 2
amending s. 752.011, F.S.; authorizing a grandparent 3
of a minor child to petition a court for court-ordered 4
visitation with the child in certain circumstances; 5
making technical changes; reenacting ss. 752.015 and 6
752.071, F.S., relating to mediation of visitation 7
disputes and the effect of adoption by a stepparent or 8
close relative, respectively, to incorporate the 9
amendment made to s. 752.011, F.S., in references 10
thereto; providing an effective date. 11
12
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 13
14
Section 1. Section 752.011, Florida Statutes, is amended 15
to read: 16
752.011 Petition for grandparent visitation with a minor 17
child.— 18
(1)(a) A grandparent of a minor child whose parents are 19
deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state may 20
petition the court for court-ordered visitation with the child 21
under this section., or 22
(b) A grandparent of a minor child whose one parent is 23
deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state and whose 24
other parent has been convicted of a felony or an offense of 25
HB 861 2026
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
violence evincing behavior that poses a substantial threat of 26
harm to the minor child's health or welfare, may petition the 27
court for court-ordered visitation with the child grandchild 28
under this section. 29
(c) A grandparent of a minor child whose one parent is 30
deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state may 31
petition the court for court-ordered visitation with the child 32
under this section if: 33
1. The child resided in the same household as the 34
grandparent for at least 6 months during the 12-month period 35
immediately preceding the parent's death, disappearance, or 36
persistent vegetative state; 37
2. The child did not live in the same household as the 38
other parent for at least 6 months during that preceding 12-39
month period; and 40
3. Eliminating the child's contact with the grandparent 41
would pose a substantial threat of harm to the physical, mental, 42
or emotional well-being of the child. 43
(2)(1) Upon the filing of a petition by a grandparent for 44
visitation, the court shall hold a preliminary hearing to 45
determine whether the petitioner has made a prima facie showing 46
of parental unfitness or significant harm to the child. Absent 47
such a showing, the court shall dismiss the petition and may 48
award reasonable attorney fees and costs to be paid by the 49
petitioner to the respondent. 50
HB 861 2026
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(3)(2) Notwithstanding subsection (2) (1), if the court 51
finds that one parent of a child has been held criminally liable 52
for the death of the other parent of the child or civilly liable 53
for an intentional tort causing the death of the other parent of 54
the child, there is a presumption for granting reasonable 55
visitation with the petitioning grandparent or stepgrandparent 56
if he or she is the parent of the child's deceased parent. This 57
presumption may only be overcome if the court finds that 58
granting such visitation is not in the best interests of the 59
child. 60
(4)(3) If the court finds that there is prima facie 61
evidence that a parent is unfit or that there is significant 62
harm to the child, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem and 63
must shall refer the matter to family mediation as provided in 64
s. 752.015. If family mediation does not successfully resolve 65
the issue of grandparent visitation, the court must shall 66
proceed with a final hearing. 67
(5)(4) After conducting a final hearing on the issue of 68
visitation, the court may award reasonable visitation to the 69
grandparent with respect to the minor child if the court finds 70
by clear and convincing evidence that a parent is unfit or that 71
there is significant harm to the child, that visitation is in 72
the best interests interest of the minor child, and that the 73
visitation will not materially harm the parent-child 74
relationship. 75
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(6)(5) In assessing the best interests of the child under 76
subsection (5) (4), the court shall consider the totality of the 77
circumstances affecting the mental and emotional well-being of 78
the minor child, including: 79
(a) The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing 80
between the minor child and the grandparent, including those 81
resulting from the relationship that had been previously allowed 82
by the child's parent. 83
(b) The length and quality of the previous relationship 84
between the minor child and the grandparent, including the 85
extent to which the grandparent was involved in providing 86
regular care and support for the child. 87
(c) Whether the grandparent established ongoing personal 88
contact with the minor child before the death of the parent, 89
before the onset of the parent's persistent vegetative state, or 90
before the parent was missing. 91
(d) The reasons cited by the respondent parent in ending 92
contact or visitation between the minor child and the 93
grandparent. 94
(e) Whether there has been significant and demonstrable 95
mental or emotional harm to the minor child as a result of the 96
disruption in the family unit, whether the child derived support 97
and stability from the grandparent, and whether the continuation 98
of such support and stability is likely to prevent further harm. 99
(f) The existence or threat to the minor child of mental 100
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injury as defined in s. 39.01. 101
(g) The present mental, physical, and emotional health of 102
the minor child. 103
(h) The present mental, physical, and emotional health of 104
the grandparent. 105
(i) The recommendations of the minor child's guardian ad 106
litem, if one is appointed. 107
(j) The result of any psychological evaluation of the 108
minor child. 109
(k) The preference of the minor child if the child is 110
determined to be of sufficient maturity to express a preference. 111
(l) A written testamentary statement by the deceased 112
parent regarding visitation with the grandparent. The absence of 113
a testamentary statement is not deemed to provide evidence that 114
the deceased or missing parent or parent in a persistent 115
vegetative state would have objected to the requested 116
visitation. 117
(m) Other factors that the court considers necessary to 118
making its determination. 119
(7)(6) In assessing material harm to the parent-child 120
relationship under subsection (5) (4), the court shall consider 121
the totality of the circumstances affecting the parent-child 122
relationship, including: 123
(a) Whether there have been previous disputes between the 124
grandparent and the parent over childrearing or other matters 125
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
related to the care and upbringing of the minor child. 126
(b) Whether visitation would materially interfere with or 127
compromise parental authority. 128
(c) Whether visitation can be arranged in a manner that 129
does not materially detract from the parent-child relationship, 130
including the quantity of time available for enjoyment of the 131
parent-child relationship and any other consideration related to 132
disruption of the schedule and routine of the parent and the 133
minor child. 134
(d) Whether visitation is being sought for the primary 135
purpose of continuing or establishing a relationship with the 136
minor child with the intent that the child benefit from the 137
relationship. 138
(e) Whether the requested visitation would expose the 139
minor child to conduct, moral standards, experiences, or other 140
factors that are inconsistent with influences provided by the 141
parent. 142
(f) The nature of the relationship between the child's 143
parent and the grandparent. 144
(g) The reasons cited by the parent in ending contact or 145
visitation between the minor child and the grandparent which was 146
previously allowed by the parent. 147
(h) The psychological toll of visitation disputes on the 148
minor child. 149
(i) Other factors that the court considers necessary in 150
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
making its determination. 151
(8)(7) Part II of chapter 61 applies to actions brought 152
under this section. 153
(9)(8) If actions under this section and s. 61.13 are 154
pending concurrently, the courts are strongly encouraged to 155
consolidate the actions in order to minimize the burden of 156
litigation on the minor child and the other parties. 157
(10)(9) An order for grandparent visitation may be 158
modified upon a showing by the person petitioning for 159
modification that a substantial change in circumstances has 160
occurred and that modification of visitation is in the best 161
interests interest of the minor child. 162
(11)(10) An original action requesting visitation under 163
this section may be filed by a grandparent only once during any 164
2-year period, except on good cause shown that the minor child 165
is suffering, or may suffer, significant and demonstrable mental 166
or emotional harm caused by a parental decision to deny 167
visitation between a minor child and the grandparent, which was 168
not known to the grandparent at the time of filing an earlier 169
action. 170
(12)(11) This section does not provide for grandparent 171
visitation with a minor child placed for adoption under chapter 172
63 except as provided in s. 752.071 with respect to adoption by 173
a stepparent or close relative. 174
(13)(12) Venue must shall be in the county where the minor 175
HB 861 2026
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
child primarily resides, unless venue is otherwise governed by 176
chapter 39, chapter 61, or chapter 63. 177
Section 2. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment 178
made by this act to section 752.011, Florida Statutes, in a 179
reference thereto, section 752.015, Florida Statutes, is 180
reenacted to read: 181
752.015 Mediation of visitation disputes.—It is the public 182
policy of this state that families resolve differences over 183
grandparent visitation within the family. It is the further 184
public policy of this state that, when families are unable to 185
resolve differences relating to grandparent visitation, the 186
family participate in any formal or informal mediation services 187
that may be available. If families are unable to resolve 188
differences relating to grandparent visitation and a petition is 189
filed pursuant to s. 752.011, the court shall, if such services 190
are available in the circuit, refer the case to family mediation 191
in accordance with the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure. 192
Section 3. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment 193
made by this act to section 752.011, Florida Statutes, in a 194
reference thereto, section 752.071, Florida Statutes, is 195
reenacted to read: 196
752.071 Effect of adoption by stepparent or close 197
relative.—After the adoption of a minor child by a stepparent or 198
close relative, the stepparent or close relative may petition 199
the court to terminate an order granting grandparent visitation 200
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
under this chapter which was entered before the adoption. The 201
court may terminate the order unless the grandparent is able to 202
show that the criteria of s. 752.011 authorizing the visitation 203
continue to be satisfied. 204
Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 205