Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB721 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	hb0721
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 721
8	8	D4 5lr1835
9	9	HB 1195/22 – JUD
10	10	By: Delegates Addison and Young
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 27, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Judiciary
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Family Law – Grandparent Visitation 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of altering the circumstances under which an equity court is authorized 3
21	21	to grant visitation rights to a grandparent of a child; specifying the circumstances 4
22	22	under which an equity court is required to grant visitation rights to a grandparent 5
23	23	of a child; and generally relating to grandparent visitation. 6
24	24
25	25	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 7
26	26	Article – Family Law 8
27	27	Section 9–102 9
28	28	Annotated Code of Maryland 10
29	29	(2019 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 11
30	30
31	31	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 12
32	32	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 13
33	33
34	34	Article – Family Law 14
35	35
36	36	9–102. 15
37	37
38	38	(A) [An] IN ACCORDANCE WITH TH E PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION, AN 16
39	39	equity court may[: 17
40	40
41	41	(1)] consider a petition for reasonable visitation of a grandchild by a 18
42	42	grandparent[; and 19
43	43
44	44	(2) if the court finds it to be in the best interests of the child, grant 20
45	45	visitation rights to the grandparent]. 21
46	46
47	47	(B) (1) SUBJECT TO THE PROVIS IONS OF PA RAGRAPH (2) OF THIS 22 2 HOUSE BILL 721
48	48
49	49
50	50	SUBSECTION AND SUBSE CTION (D) OF THIS SECTION, AN EQUITY COURT MAY GRANT 1
51	51	VISITATION RIGHTS TO A GRANDPARENT IF : 2
52	52
53	53	(I) THE PETITION FOR VIS ITATION RIGHTS WAS F ILED AFTER 3
54	54	AN ACTION FOR DIVORC E, ANNULMENT , CUSTODY, OR PATERNITY WAS FIL ED BY A 4
55	55	PARENT OF THE CHILD ; AND 5
56	56
57	57	(II) THE COURT FINDS THAT GRANTING VISITATION RIGHTS TO 6
58	58	THE GRANDPARENT : 7
59	59
60	60	1. IS IN THE BEST INTER ESTS OF THE CHILD ; AND 8
61	61
62	62	2. WOULD NOT INTERFERE WITH THE PARENT –CHILD 9
63	63	RELATIONSHIP . 10
64	64
65	65	(2) IN MAKING A DETERMINA TION UNDER PARAGRAPH (1)(II)1 OF 11
66	66	THIS SUBSECTION , THE COURT SHALL CONS IDER THE AMOUNT OF P ERSONAL 12
67	67	CONTACT THAT OCCURRE D BETWEEN THE GRANDP ARENT AND THE CHILD BEFORE 13
68	68	THE FILING OF THE PE TITION. 14
69	69
70	70	(C) SUBJECT TO THE PROVIS IONS OF SUBSECTION (D) OF THIS SECTION, AN 15
71	71	EQUITY COURT SHALL G RANT VISITATION RIGH TS TO A GRANDPARENT UNDER THIS 16
72	72	SECTION IF: 17
73	73
74	74	(1) (I) THE CHILD RESIDED WI TH THE GRANDPARENT F OR A 18
75	75	PERIOD OF AT LEAST 12 MONTHS; OR 19
76	76
77	77	(II) THE CHILD ’S PARENT WHO IS THE CHILD OF THE 20
78	78	GRANDPARENT IS DECEA SED; AND 21
79	79
80	80	(2) THE COURT FINDS THAT GRANTING VISITATION RIGHTS TO THE 22
81	81	GRANDPARENT : 23
82	82
83	83	(I) IS IN THE BEST INTER ESTS OF THE CHILD ; AND 24
84	84
85	85	(II) WOULD NOT INTERFERE WITH THE PARENT –CHILD 25
86	86	RELATIONSHIP . 26
87	87
88	88	(D) IN MAKING A DETERMINA TION UNDER THIS SECT ION, THE COURT MAY 27
89	89	NOT DENY VISITATION RIGHTS BASED ON ALLE GATIONS THAT GRANTIN G 28
90	90	VISITATION RIGHTS TO THE GRANDPARENT WOUL D INTERFERE WITH THE 29
91	91	PARENT–CHILD RELATIONSHIP U NLESS, AFTER A HEARING , THE COURT 30
92	92	DETERMINES BY A PREP ONDERANCE OF THE EVI DENCE THAT INTERFERE NCE 31 HOUSE BILL 721 3
93	93
94	94
95	95	WOULD OCCUR. 1
96	96
97	97	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 2
98	98	October 1, 2025. 3
99	99