At the Law Office of Stephen Ross, we understand that the adoption process can seem frustrating and confusing. If you have questions about adoption in Pennsylvania, we’ll help you find the answers. Contact us to talk to an attorney about your case.
Common Questions
Yes. Court approval is needed for both agency and private adoptions.
Generally, they lose all rights and have no obligations. They have no right of contact with the child, cannot obtain information about the child and have no obligation to support the child. However, there are “open adoptions” in which parents may by agreement retain some rights to contact with the child and sharing of information about the child.
An unfit parent is one who has failed to have regular contact with a child or to contribute to his or her support. A parent is also unfit if he or she has been abusive or has otherwise failed to provide adequate care for the child.
A divorce does not affect the legality of the adoption. The stepparent continues to have all of the rights and responsibilities as the biological parent, including a right to seek custody and a duty to support the child.
A stepparent adoption is one in which a child’s biological parent marries someone who wishes to adopt the biological parent’s child and is able to do so because the other biological parent consents or because consent is unnecessary. If a biological parent does not consent to the adoption, the child cannot be adopted unless a court first finds that the biological parent is unfit. If a biological parent is found unfit, that persons parental rights can be terminated and a child can be adopted.
In most states, court adoption records are sealed and can only be opened by court order. However, Pennsylvania requires that certain non-identifying information, such as the medical history of the biological family, be made available to the adoptive parents at the time of the adoption.
An adopted child has exactly the same rights as a child reared by his or her biological parents. Adoptive parents have the same obligations to the adopted child as they would to a child born to them.
