You and your ex won’t be the only ones who care about the parenting plan you create when your relationship ends. Extended family members will care as well, and they can exacerbate the conflict involved in shared custody arrangements.
Family members, eager to support the parents, may unintentionally feed into their animosity toward each other. Families tend to stick together in a divorce situation, which can be supportive and also problematic.
Particularly when you worry about a grandparent who has a history of rude speech or attempts at physical discipline, it may be necessary to address grandparents in your Florida parenting plan.
Grandparents have few visitation rights
Unless your children get taken out of your custody and placed in state care, grandparents do not have grounds to bring a claim for visitation under Florida law. Of course, they can still play a major role in children’s lives by providing childcare or allowing their child to move back in after their divorce. Their frequent contact with your child could be a reason for concern.
If you believe the grandparents are dangerous and unsafe to have around the children, you may need to negotiate limiting their access or including language that prevents them from providing childcare or being left unattended around the children. On the other hand, you may want to negotiate arrangements that ensure the grandparents have a healthy relationship with the children.
You can keep grandparents involved by inviting them to birthday parties, connecting their phone calls or scheduling video chats for birthdays, holidays and other special events. Addressing issues that will likely cause parenting conflicts later in a parenting plan can be a way for divorcing parents to reduce how much conflict their family endures.