Ch. 283                                    LAWS OF MARYLAND

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments,

Article - Family Law

Section 5-313

Annotated Code of Maryland

(1984 Volume and 1986 Supplement)

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
MARYLAND, That the Laws of Maryland read as follows:

Article - Family Law

5-313.

(a)  A court may grant a decree of adoption or a decree of
guardianship, without the consent of a natural parent otherwise
required by §§ 5-311 and 5-317 of this subtitle, if the court
finds by clear and convincing evidence that it is in the best
interest of the child to terminate the natural parent's rights as
to the child and that:

(1)  the child is abandoned as provided in subsection
(b) of this section;

(2)  in a prior juvenile proceeding, the child has
been adjudicated to be a child in need of assistance, a neglected
child, an abused child, or a dependent child; or

(3)  the following set of circumstances exist:

(i) the child has been continuously out of the
custody of the natural parent and in the custody of a child
placement agency for at least 1 year;

(ii) the conditions that led to the separation
from the natural parent still exist or similar conditions of a
potentially harmful nature still exist;

(iii) there is little likelihood that those
conditions will be remedied at an early date so that the child
can be returned to the natural parent in the immediate future;
and

(iv) a continuation of the relationship between
the natural parent and the child would diminish greatly the
child's prospects for early integration into a stable and
permanent family.

(b)  The court may find that a child is abandoned for
purposes of this section if, after a thorough investigation by
the child placement agency, the court finds that:

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