In Re Marriage of Meier

Opinion

KINGSLEY, J.

This is an appeal from an order of the superior court denying a petition by the maternal grandparents of a minor child to be

[122]

permitted to join as parties in a dissolution proceeding for the purpose of securing an order granting them rights of visitation with the child.

1

For the reasons set forth below, we affirm the order.

On July 16, 1970, a final decree of dissolution was entered in this proceeding which decree incorporated the provisions of an interlocutory decree entered on March 9, 1970. By the terms of those decrees, custody of the minor child of the parties, then one and one-half years old, was granted to the mother with visitation rights in the father. On July 10, 1974, the maternal grandparents filed their petition for joinder, accompanied by their petition for visitation rights. Opposition to the petitions was filed by the'mother. After a hearing in chambers (not reported) the trial court denied the petition for joinder and, therefore, did not reach and did not decide the petition for visitation rights.

I

Prior

to the

effective date

of

the Family Law Act, no statute provided for visitation rights in anyone other than the father and mother, except for the provision in section 197.5 of the Civil Code which permitted visitation orders in favor of grandparents in cases where the grandparents’ child was deceased. That provision, still in force, obviously is inapplicable in this case, where there is no showing that either parent is not alive. In two California cases,

2

both involving orders made prior to the Family Law Act, orders granting grandparents rights of visitation were upheld where they were based on stipulations of the parents. No such stipulation is alleged or shown in the case at bench.