Case Name: Lori SANDOR, Appellant, v. Roger E. SANDOR and Cynthia A. Sandor, Appellees
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1984-01-17
Citations: 444 So. 2d 1029
Docket Number: No. 83-1798
Parties: Lori SANDOR, Appellant, v. Roger E. SANDOR and Cynthia A. Sandor, Appellees.
Judges: Before HUBBART, FERGUSON and JORGENSON, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 444
Pages: 1029–1031

Head Matter:
Lori SANDOR, Appellant, v. Roger E. SANDOR and Cynthia A. Sandor, Appellees.
No. 83-1798.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.
Jan. 17, 1984.
Rehearing Denied Feb. 20, 1984.
Guy Spiegelman, Miami, for appellant.
Edward C. Yining, Jr., Miami, for appel-lees.
Before HUBBART, FERGUSON and JORGENSON, JJ.

Opinion:
PER CURIAM.
This is an appeal taken by the former wife [Lori Sandor] from an order granting child visitation rights to the half-sister of the parties' minor children in post-marriage dissolution proceedings. The former wife had previously, by court order, been granted custody of the parties' two minor children. The former husband [Roger E. San-dor] has since remarried and has another child, a daughter, born of his second marriage; this child is the half-sister of the parties' minor children. The former husband has since disappeared, and his present wife [Cynthia A. Sandor] petitioned the court below to allow her daughter [the half-sister herein] to be allowed visitation rights with the parties' minor children. All three children had at one point lived together with the former husband. The trial court granted the motion and allowed their half-sister to visit the said minor children under certain stated restrictions.
The law is well-settled that "[a]n order granting visitation rights to a nonparent of a child whose custody has been awarded to a fit parent . is unjustified and unenforceable." Rodriguez v. Rodriguez, 295 So.2d 328, 329 (Fla.3d DCA 1974); see also Parker v. Gates, 89 Fla. 76, 103 So. 126 (1925); Tamarago v. Tamarago, 348 So.2d 1163 (Fla.2d DCA 1977); Sheehy v. Sheehy, 325 So.2d 12 (Fla.2d DCA 1975); Lee v. Kepler, 197 So.2d 570 (Fla.3d DCA 1967). The only exception to this rule is that, by statute, the court may award child visitation rights to the grandparents of a minor child. § 61.13(2)(b)(2)(c), Fla.Stat. (Supp. 1982). As custody of the minor children herein has been awarded by the court to the former wife, it is plain that the order under review awarding visitation rights to the half-sister of the minor children must be reversed as being unjustified and unenforceable.
The order under review is reversed and the cause is remanded to the trial court with directions to vacate the said order and to dismiss all proceedings directed toward implementing the said order.
Reversed.