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SUBSTITUTE
SENATE BILL 6153
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Passed
Legislature - 1998 Regular Session
State of Washington 55th
Legislature 1998 Regular Session
By
Read first time 02/06/98.
Revising
procedures for bringing actions for the injury or death of a child.
AN
ACT Relating to actions for injury or death of a child; amending RCW 4.24.010;
and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 1. It
is the intent of this act to address the constitutional issue of equal
protection addressed by the Washington state supreme court in Guard v.
Jackson, 132 Wn.2d 660 (1997). The legislature intends to provide a civil
cause of action for wrongful injury or death of a minor child to a mother or
father, or both, if the mother or father has had significant involvement in the
child's life, including but not limited to, emotional, psychological, or
financial support.
Sec.
2. RCW
4.24.010 and 1973 1st ex.s. c 154 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
((The))
A mother or father, or both ((may maintain an action as
plaintiff for the injury or death of a)), who has regularly contributed
to the support of his or her minor child, ((or)) and the mother
or father, or both, of a child on whom either, or both, are dependent for
support((: PROVIDED, That in the case of an illegitimate child the father
cannot)) may maintain or join as a party an action ((unless
paternity has been duly established and the father has regularly contributed to
the child's support)) as plaintiff for the injury or death of the child.
This
section creates only one cause of action, but if the parents of the child are
not married, are separated, or not married to each other damages may be awarded
to each plaintiff separately, as the ((court)) trier of fact finds
just and equitable.
If
one parent brings an action under this section and the other parent is not
named as a plaintiff, notice of the institution of the suit, together with a
copy of the complaint, shall be served upon the other parent: PROVIDED, That ((when
the mother of an illegitimate child initiates an action,)) notice shall be
required only if ((paternity)) parentage has been duly
established ((and the father has regularly contributed to the child's
support)).
Such
notice shall be in compliance with the statutory requirements for a summons.
Such notice shall state that the other parent must join as a party to the suit
within twenty days or the right to recover damages under this section shall be
barred. Failure of the other parent to timely appear shall bar such parent's
action to recover any part of an award made to the party instituting the suit.
In such an action, in addition to damages for medical, hospital,
medication expenses, and loss of services and support, damages may be recovered
for the loss of love and companionship of the child and for injury to or
destruction of the parent-child relationship in such amount as, under all the
circumstances of the case, may be just.
