S-4768               _______________________________________________

                                         SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL NO. 6376

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Law & Justice (originally sponsored by Senators Metcalf, Benitz, Stratton and Rasmussen)

Read first time 2/2/90.

AN ACT Relating to grandparents' visitation of adopted children; and amending RCW 26.33.260.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  Section 26, chapter 155, Laws of 1984 and RCW 26.33.260 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The entry of a decree of adoption divests any parent or alleged father who is not married to the adoptive parent or who has not joined in the petition for adoption of all legal rights and obligations in respect to the adoptee, except past-due child support obligations.  The adoptee shall be free from all legal obligations of obedience and maintenance in respect to the parent.  The adoptee shall be, to all intents and purposes, and for all legal incidents, the child, legal heir, and lawful issue of the adoptive parent, entitled to all rights and privileges, including the right of inheritance and the right to take under testamentary disposition, and subject to all the obligations of a natural child of the adoptive parent.

(2) The entry of a decree of adoption does not divest the adoptee's  natural grandparents of the right to visitation of the adoptee if the grandparents had a previous relationship with the child and one of the custodial parents is the natural parent of the adoptee, unless the court determines that grandparent visitation would not be in the best interests of the adoptee.