Adopting a grandchild is a significant decision. It also involves interaction with social workers and the courts. A family law attorney can help you navigate the process. And, if there are objections to your request, a lawyer can help you build a strong case for the adoption.
Legal Guardianship: Under a legal guardianship arrangement, the child’s parents continue to retain their parental rights. However, a court order or legal document will give the grandparents the authority to care for the child;
Whether a healthy emotional bond already exists between the child and their grandparents. To further clarify what the court is looking for, they will consider whether the petitioning grandparents are mobile, and are able to be present and an active participant in the child’s life.
The court may be required to notify all grandparents of the grandchild’s pending adoption, and may allow the grandparents to legally object. It is important to remember that unless it is in the best interest of the child, the court will generally not deny the adoption.
Adoptions come in many forms. Most grandparent adoptions are considered kinship adoptions (when a child is adopted by a family member). And, most g...
Depending on state law, the court may have to notify you of a grandchild’s pending adoption. You also have the right to object to another family’s...
Before you adopt a grandchild, you should ask yourself a series of questions: 1. Am I physically and financially capable of caring for the child? 2...
Adopting a grandchild is a significant decision. It also involves interaction with social workers and the courts. A family law attorney can help yo...
In order for anyone to adopt a child, including the child’s grandparents, Pennsylvania laws state that the child’s natural mother and the child’s natural father must give consent, if they are able to and have parental rights. If the child is older than 12, he or she must also consent.
When people think about adopting a child, they often think about a young parent or couple looking to start or expand their family. However, there are millions of grandparents taking on the role of parent today.
Situations when adoption can be crucial include death of a parent or if a parent poses a threat to a child’s safety and well-being. Under these circumstances, there should be an adult who can make legal decisions for a child and provide necessary care.
Often, grandparents seek to adopt grandchildren not out of a desire to become parents again but out of necessity and to protect the children . In these situations, there can be some difficult emotions and problematic relationships that can make adoption by grandparents (or other relatives) quite complicated.
Suppose you’re wondering can you adopt without a lawyer. In that case, the answer is that although it is possible to adopt a grandchild without a lawyer, it is recommended to obtain legal counsel to ensure that the process goes as smoothly as possible.
If a child’s biological parents aren’t suitable for parenting due to substance abuse, neglect, domestic violence, or other factoring issues, or if the parents do not desire to have custody of their child, grandparents may step in and adopt. Adoption can also take place if the child’s biological parents are deceased or incarcerated.
Generically speaking, no. Grandparents don’t have automatic custody rights to their grandchildren. However, each of the states within the United States has some form of a legal statute that allows grandparents or other family members to petition the courts for visitation.
There are several situations in which the courts will allow grandparents to take custody of their grandchildren. These reasons include, but are not limited to, the following issues occurring with the biological parents:
Although it is not required in all situations, it is recommended that you hire a lawyer for a grandparent adoption when financially able to do so. An adoption lawyer can help you navigate the legal web of ever-changing laws that come with family court and adoption.
There are many circumstances in which a grandparent may want or need to take custody of their grandchildren. Although this is not a desirable path, it can become necessary if the biological parents can’t or won’t care for the children themselves.
There are only two types of adoptive placements that are allowed by Virginia law. These are agency placements and non-agency placements.
The purpose of adoption is to place children who have been permanently and legally separated from their birth parents with a new family. It is a social and legal process which gives new parent (s) the same rights and obligations as biological parents.
A relative adoption, sometimes also referred to as a kinship adoption, is when an adult adopts an eligible family member. Sometimes this occurs when a child has already been living with a family member who has acted as their guardian or parental figure, and the family decides to legally protect the child’s status within ...
One of the greatest benefits of kinship adoptions is that they are a simpler legal process than a traditional infant adoption.
Some parts of the domestic adoption process will not apply to the kinship adoption process, which can make the process easier and faster.
However, you’ll still need an adoption attorney to complete the relative adoption process. When you adopt a family member, just like with any other type of adoption, you need to make sure that it’s completed correctly so that you and your child are legally protected.
Can I Adopt My Sibling, Niece/Nephew, Grandchild or other Family Member? Yes — if you’re eligible to adopt a child, then you can adopt a minor child who is related to you through a family adoption in Virginia, Maryland or the District of Columbia.