Section 5-320 - Authority to grant guardianship. - Maryland Statutes

§ 5-320. Authority to grant guardianship.
 

(a)  Consent and acquiescence or best interests.- A juvenile court may grant guardianship of a child only if: 

(1) (i) the child does not object; 

(ii) the local department: 

1. filed the petition; or 

2. did not object to another party filing the petition; and 

(iii) 1. each of the child's living parents consents: 

A. in writing; 

B. knowingly and voluntarily, on the record before the juvenile court; or 

C. by failure to file a timely notice of objection after being served with a show cause order in accordance with this subtitle; 

2. an administrative, executive, or judicial body of a state or other jurisdiction has granted a governmental unit or person other than a parent the power to consent to adoption, and the unit or person consents; or 

3. parental rights have been terminated in compliance with the laws of a state or other jurisdiction, as described in § 5-305 of this subtitle; or 

(2) in accordance with § 5-323 of this subtitle, the juvenile court finds termination of parental rights to be in the child's best interests without consent otherwise required under this section or over the child's objection. 

(b)  Conditional consent or acquiescence.- A governmental unit or person: 

(1) may condition consent or acquiescence on adoption into a specific family that a local department approves for the placement; but 

(2) may not condition consent or acquiescence on any factor other than placement into a specific family. 
 

[2005, ch. 464, § 3; 2006, ch. 365, § 2.]