An Act To Strengthen the Rights of Grandparents under the Grandparents Visitation Act

Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §1802, sub-§2  is enacted to read:

SUMMARY

This bill amends the Grandparents Visitation Act to provide a definition of "significant existing relationship." A grandparent who can prove a sufficient existing relationship with a grandchild has standing to seek contact with the child. This new definition provides that a grandparent who proves that the grandparent is playing or has played a significant beneficial role in the child's life can establish standing to proceed with the action. This bill makes clear that, although acting as a parent to a child meets the requirements of a "sufficient existing relationship" with a child, that is not the only relationship that meets the requirements.