# **In Oklahoma, do grandparents have the right to visitation?** ![](https://i.imgur.com/oWCMcJW.jpg) Oklahoma law grants grandparents some rights in addition to parents when it comes to making decisions about how to raise their grandchildren. Grandparents' visitation rights are one of family law's most hotly contested issues. The [**grandparents visitation rights in Oklahoma**](https://grandparents.attorney/grandparents-visitation-rights-in-oklahoma/) are covered in this article. Unfortunately, in the event that a mother and father's relationship fails to recover, the grandparents' ability to see their grandchildren will be dependent on the parents. The good news is that grandparents in Oklahoma may be eligible to receive visitation rights in the future. In the same way that a judge decides child custody and visitation rights between parents, grandparents' visitation rights are frequently determined by the court based on what is in the child's best interest. The constitutional document for the state of Oklahoma acknowledges the right of parents to bring up their children and, in general, does not infringe on this right, provided that the parents possess the mental capacity to do so. On the other hand, the state recognizes the child's right to have a relationship with their grandparents in situations where one of the child's parents is deemed unfit or unavailable to care for them, such as when a parent dies at an early age, is addicted to drugs, or is incarcerated. Through the provision of visitation rights for grandparents, it encourages the maintenance of these relationships. # In Oklahoma, grandparents' visitation rights are based on the following: 1. What is best for the child, which the court will determine by considering at least 14 predetermined factors, such as: • the child's grandparents' previous relationship with them; • maintaining the existing relationship is advantageous; • the continuity of the child's family and surroundings; • the young person's age and preferences; and • the parent gave reasons for rejecting visitation. 2. Parental incompetence, resoundingly convincing evidence from the grandparents that the parents are not acting in the child's best interests, or proof that the child would suffer harm if the grandparents were not allowed to visit. 3. A breakup of the child's nuclear family—the collapse of the family unit in which the child resides—due to a divorce, a separation, or the fact that the parents were never wed. All three of these conditions must obtain an order from the court allowing grandparent visitation. Bringing a case for visitation without satisfying any of these conditions is typically discouraged. All three of these conditions must obtain an order from the court allowing grandparent visitation. For more information on your rights to visitation with your grandchildren, you should discuss the matter with an experienced family law attorney. # Conclusion Parents and grandparents can reach a mutually agreeable arrangement regarding visitation rights. Without such an agreement, it is assumed that the parents are competent and doing what is in their children's best interests when they deny the grandparent visitation rights. This will be done in the children's best interest, of course. However, it is common for only one of the child's parents to support visitation rights for a grandparent while the other parent opposes the idea. In cases like these, the court's decision will be based on what the judge thinks is in the child's best interest.