Substitute Senate Bill No. 155 Summary

• Replaces "adopting parent" with "adoptive parent" throughout probate statutes and allows adopted persons to inherit from and through adoptive parents and their relatives as if they were biological children.

• Permits adult adoption between unrelated individuals with Probate Court approval if they share a parent-adult child relationship, and allows one parent to join adoption agreements to terminate the relationship with the non-joining parent.

• Simplifies paternity establishment for children born out of wedlock by requiring only written acknowledgment under section 46b-172 or court adjudication under chapter 815y, eliminating previous requirements for clear and convincing evidence of written acknowledgment and open treatment.

• Authorizes Probate Courts to make findings regarding special immigrant juvenile status for minor children in guardianship, parental rights termination, and adoption proceedings for federal immigration purposes.

• Grants Probate Court judges and employees access to confidential juvenile matter records for performance of their duties and allows parties to object to admissibility of such records in court proceedings.