J. MILLARD TAWES, Governor                        329

dated.] Minority of a natural parent shall not place such parent under
a disability in adoption or guardianship with the right to consent to
adoption proceedings and such parent, if he has attained the age of
eighteen (18) years, may give a valid consent to adoption or guardian-
ship with the right to consent to adoption and/or join as a party in
such proceedings and shall be considered sui juris and no adoption
or guardianship with right to consent to adoption shall be invalidated
because of the minority of a natural parent.

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall take effect
June 1, 1963.

Approved March 29, 1963.

CHAPTER 174
(Senate Bill 277)

AN ACT to repeal and re-enact, with amendments, Section 78 of
Article 16 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1962 Supplement),
title "Chancery", sub-title "Adoption", amending the law regard-
ing the rights of inheritance of an adopted person.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That Section 78 of Article 16 of the Annotated Code of Maryland
(1962 Supplement), title "Chancery", sub-title "Adoption", be and
it is hereby repealed and re-enacted, with amendments, to read as
follows:

78.

From and after the entry of an interlocutory decree of adoption
or from and after the entry of a final decree of adoption where no
such interlocutory decree is entered, the following legal effects shall
result:

(a)   Except as otherwise expressly provided in this section, the
person adopted shall be, to all intents and purposes, the child of the
petitioner or petitioners; unless and until such interlocutory order
of adoption is revoked the person adopted shall be entitled to
all the rights and privileges and subject to all the obligations of a
child born in lawful wedlock to the petitioner or petitioners.

(b)   The natural parents of the person adopted, if living, shall
after the interlocutory decree be relieved of all legal duties and obli-
gations due from them to the person adopted, and shall be divested
of all rights with respect to such person [; provided, that nothing
in this sub-title shall be construed to prevent the person adopted
from inheriting from his natural parents and relatives under the
laws of this or any other state.] Upon the entry of a Decree of
Adoption, the adopted child shall lose all rights of inheritance from
its natural parents and from their natural collateral or lineal rela-
tives. The rights of the natural parents or their collateral or lineal
relatives to inherit from such child shall cease upon the said adop-
tion. Nothing contained in this section shall limit in any way the
right of any person to provide for the distribution of his property
by will.