OK HB2609

Extends existing grandparent visitation rights under 43 O.S. Section 109.4 to include former legal guardians of unmarried minor children

Former legal guardians may seek court-ordered visitation when the nuclear family has been disrupted (divorce, death, incarceration, parental rights termination) and they demonstrate a strong, continuous relationship with the child

Petitioners must show the child would suffer harm without visitation by clear and convincing evidence, or demonstrate parental unfitness, in addition to proving visitation is in the child's best interest

Courts may not grant visitation to former legal guardians if the child is in an intact nuclear family and both parents object

Effective date: November 1, 2016