Virginia Adoption Laws Maryland Guardianship Attorney Stepparent Fairfax Prince
STEP PARENT / INTERNATIONAL / AGENCY / ADULT /GUARDIANSHIP
VIRGINIA & MARYLAND LAWYERS
Adoption is a wonderful thing to do for a child. It is an opportunity to give a child a new life and a parent a new dream. There are many types of adoptions. The following are some of the types of adoptions, the firm handles for its clients. Please take the time to read this and let us know how we can help you. Please feel free to contact us either via email or phone. We look forward to helping you with adoption, whether it is your first adoption or your third.
We have attorneys and client meeting locations in Virginia & Maryland.
Virginia: Fairfax, Lynchburg, Manassas, Richmond and Virginia Beach.
Maryland: Rockville & Baltimore.
Hire a SRIS, P.C. Virginia or Maryland lawyer to assist you with your adoption in Virginia & Maryland. if you need to speak with an Virginia or Maryland attorney regarding an adoption, please simply contact us via phone at 888-437-7747.
Please click on the state that applies to you if you wish to view some of the different adoptions laws:
To get a better understanding of some of the different types of Adoptions, please scroll down:
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STEP PARENT ADOPTION
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INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION
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AGENCY ADOPTION
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ADULT ADOPTION
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GUARDIANSHIP
STEP PARENT ADOPTION (top)
Generally, a step parent adoption involves a man / woman who has remarried and has a child (or children) from a previous relationship. When there is little or no contact with the biological father or mother, the primary parent /child relationship forms between the step parent and the child. When this occurs, an adoption by the step parent is a good idea, so that the step parent has legal recognition as the child’s parent. If this legal procedure is not undertaken and completed, the birth father / mother may be able to assert his / her rights as a parent, should the other birth parent becomes incapacitated. A step parent adoption thus enables the step parent to ensure that the child and new family unit remain secure.
The law requires that the birth father / mother be given notice of adoption proceedings. Ordinarily, the birth father is supportive of the adoption. The birth father no longer owes child support once the adoption is finalized. He is still responsible, however, for any back child support incurred up to the time of the final adoption. A consent is presented to the birth father for signature. If the birth father signs the consent, the birth father’s rights are voluntarily terminated and the step father may proceed with an adoption.
If the birth father refuses to sign a consent, or it is impossible to locate the birth father, it is still possible to terminate the birth father’s rights. It may be necessary to publish notice to the birth father in a newspaper with general circulation in the area of the birth father’s last known address. This gives the birth father notice of the proceedings and, if the birth father fails to respond, his rights are terminated by the court.
INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION (top)
A number of different agencies throughout the United States help place babies and older children from foreign countries with couples in the United States. Every agency has a number of requirements that have to be met by the adoptive parents to qualify for an adoption through the particular adoptive agencies. One example of this is the maximum age criteria imposed by most adoptive agencies. The standard used by most adoption agencies is that the adoptive parents must be under the age of 40. The adoptive parents will have to carefully review the requirements of adoption agencies before proceeding with the international adoption process.
Also, each country has its own particular set of rules in allowing the adoption of one of its citizens. In most countries, the adoptive couple must adopt the child in that particular foreign country. Once this adoption process is completed, then the adoptive parents return to the United States and the child must be re-adopted in order to obtain a United States birth certificate.
It is possible to adopt a child from a foreign country privately. A pre-placement report is still required and must be obtained from a caseworker who is associated with an agency licensed in the United States. The attorney in the United States would then handle the termination of parental rights and the finalization of the adoption.
AGENCY ADOPTION (top)
A number of agencies provide a wide range of adoption services. Generally, for infant adoption, these agencies have a policy of transparency and have the birth parent(s) select the adoptive parents and meet with them. The adoptive parents and birth parent(s) may agree to limited contact between the birth mother and child once the adoption is finalized. Most adoption agencies charge placement fees to adoptive parents. Adoption agencies are also able to offer foster care services for children and a variety of home study services. Again, it is important that the adoptive parents carefully determine which adoption agency is best suited to meet the needs of the adoptive parents
In an agency adoption, the formal custody transfer is from the birth mother to the agency, and then to the adoptive parents at finalization. Finalization occurs after the post-placement visit and report and is usually completed within one to six months.
ADULT ADOPTION (top)
When a step-parent has raised a child to the age of majority, the child who has attained the age of majority, may desire to formally recognize the parent/child relationship with their step-parent by formalizing the parent – child relationship by completing an adult adoption. The formal adoption proceeding is a very joyous occasion which formalizes a relationship that, in many cases, has existed for many years.
It is not necessary for the adult adoptee to give notice to his or her birth parents. It is also not necessary to terminate the parental rights of the adult adoptee’s birth parents.
GUARDIANSHIP (top)
A guardianship action is filed for a number of reasons. A guardian ship action is usually initiated when a person is incapacitated and requires a competent adult to make medical or financial decisions on that person’s behalf. Any person, under the age of 18, is considered to be incapacitated in most states, because the person has not reached the age of majority. If a child is residing with a family other than that child’s legal parents, a guardianship action would name those adults as the guardians of the child and would generally allow the guardians to then make medical decisions and financial decisions on behalf of the child. This type of action also enables the guardian(s) to enroll the child in school and make other decisions that enable the guardian to take care of the child while in their care. Guardianship actions are also filed on behalf of adults who have become incapacitated.
In a guardianship action, a guardian ad litem is almost always appointed for the incapacitated person. The guardian ad litem meets with the incapacitated person and with the proposed guardian and then recommends to the court whether a guardianship is necessary, and if so, whether the proposed guardian is the appropriate person to act in that capacity. The fee for the guardian ad litem is paid from the incapacitated person’s funds.
Our lawyers and staff in Virginia & Maryland speak the following languages in addition to English: Spanish, French, Arabic, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Cantonese, Mandarin & Malaysian.
Our attorneys are licensed to handle adoption cases in Virginia, Maryland & D.C. However, our attorneys handle adoption cases only in Virginia & Maryland at the present time.
Please click on attorneys to learn more about the lawyers who handle adoptions in Virginia & Maryland.
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