In Re the Adoption of a Child by W.P.

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

GARIBALDI, J.

The issue in this appeal is whether pursuant to N.J.S.A. 9:2-7.1 (the “Grandparent Visitation Statute”), grandparental visitation by a child’s biological grandparents can be enforced over the objections of nonrelative adoptive parents. To resolve that issue, we must determine whether an award of visitation under the Grandparent Visitation Statute conflicts with the public policy of the New Jersey Adoption Act, N.J.S.A. 9:3-37 to -56 (the “Adoption Act”), when a child is adopted by a nonrelative intact family.

I

V was born on August 11, 1994,…