Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H1608 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 535 FILED ON: 1/13/2023
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1608
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Michael P. Kushmerek
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to great-grandparent visitation rights.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Michael P. Kushmerek3rd Worcester1/13/2023Vanna Howard17th Middlesex1/31/2023 1 of 2
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 535 FILED ON: 1/13/2023
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1608
18	18	By Representative Kushmerek of Fitchburg, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1608)
19	19	of Michael P. Kushmerek and Vanna Howard relative to great-grandparent visitation rights. The
20	20	Judiciary.
21	21	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
22	22	SEE HOUSE, NO. 1719 OF 2021-2022.]
23	23	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
24	24	_______________
25	25	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
26	26	(2023-2024)
27	27	_______________
28	28	An Act relative to great-grandparent visitation rights.
29	29	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
30	30	of the same, as follows:
31	31	1 Chapter 119 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 39D and
32	32	2inserting in place thereof the following section:-
33	33	3 Section 39D. If the parents of an unmarried minor child are divorced, married but living
34	34	4apart pursuant to a temporary order or judgment of separate support, or if either or both parents
35	35	5are deceased, or if the unmarried minor child was born out of wedlock whose paternity has been
36	36	6adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction or whose father has signed an acknowledgement
37	37	7of paternity, and the parents do not reside together, the grandparents or great-grandparents of the
38	38	8minor child may be granted reasonable visitation rights to the minor child during his minority by
39	39	9the probate and family court department of the trial court upon a written finding that the
40	40	10visitation rights would be in the best interest of the minor child; provided, however, that the 2 of 2
41	41	11adjudication of paternity or acknowledgment of paternity shall not be required in order to
42	42	12proceed pursuant to this section where maternal grandparents or great-grandparents are seeking
43	43	13the visitation rights. No visitation rights shall be granted if the minor child has been adopted by a
44	44	14person other than a stepparent of the child and any visitation rights granted pursuant to this
45	45	15section prior to the adoption of the minor child shall be terminated upon the adoption without
46	46	16any further action of the court.
47	47	17 A petition for grandparent or great-grandparent visitation authorized pursuant to this
48	48	18section shall, where applicable, be filed in the county within the commonwealth in which the
49	49	19divorce or separate support complaint or the complaint to establish paternity was filed. If the
50	50	20divorce, separate support or paternity judgment was entered without the commonwealth but the
51	51	21child presently resides within the commonwealth, the petition may be filed in the county where
52	52	22the child resides.