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Family law Washington state, parent right to child school and health records

My wife and I have been divorced for about seven years and share legal custody of our two children. The kids were enrolled in a daycare in the Tacoma, WA area by the mother.

The daycare has consistently refused to provide educational materials for the children w/o the mother's approval. Their rationale is that she signed the contract with them to provide daycare and therefore they were only responsible to her.

Is this legal in the State of Washington?

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Attorney answers (1)

Reputation Level 20
You can review RCW 26.09.225 (Access to child's education and health care records) to see if that statute can help you. The statutes are available here: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=26.09 .

I am confused by the word "daycare". When I hear "daycare", I imagine a place for preschool children. Since you have been divorced for 7 years, presumably your children are of school age. Also, note the "all grades kindergarten through twelve" provision in the statute.

I suppose the school is right in the sense that the school has no contractual obligations with you. However, if needed and unless prohibited by orders from the court, your attorney likely can subpoena the school records for your children. Getting involved with a subpoena can be expensive for you, the mother, and the school.

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