What kinds of adoption do
you specialize in handling?
How long will it take us
to adopt?
How much will it cost us
to adopt?
Are any of our adoption expenses
tax deductible?
How can we control the outlay
of money in our adoption?
How will we know if our birth
mother is legitimate?
How and what do you charge
for your legal services?
What about the birth father?
Should we work with a facilitator
or other unlicensed intermediary?
Will we be able to reach
you when we need you?
Which adoption attorney
should I hire?
We don't live in California.
Can we still use your services?
What
kinds of adoption do you specialize in handling?
Our
office represents clients most often in private placement
Independent Adoptions (that is where the birth parents
choose the adoptive parents and place the baby directly
with the adoptive parents usually at the time of the
baby's discharge from the hospital). We also represent
clients who are adopting through licensed adoption
agencies. We handle collaborative placements which
combine the best features of Independent and Agency
adoptions often without the drawbacks of traditional
Agency adoptions. We represent birth mothers and adoptive
couples throughout the United States.
How
long will it take us to adopt?
While
nobody can guarantee how quickly you will match with
a birth mother who meets your needs and whose needs
you meet as well, it has been our experience that our
clients match promptly. The average client is able
to match with a birth mother and have a baby in their
home through our efforts in most instances within a
year and a half of commencing the process. We do not
have a waiting list in our office. In fact, because
the birth parents choose the adoptive couple it really
does not matter to the birth mother how long clients
have been waiting to adopt--the birth mother may choose
a client who just retained the firm or one who has
been waiting a while--the choice and the reasons for
that choice are the birth mother's alone. However,
unlike other law firms which stockpile dozens of clients,
we work with a smaller amount of adoptive parents at
any given time and our clients receive more individualized
and personal attention to their needs.
How
much will it cost us to adopt?
The
total cost of each adoption depends on the facts of
each individual case. If the birth mother is living
with her parents and covered under the family medical
insurance policy, the adoption costs may be quite low.
On the other hand, if she is living on her own and
has no medical insurance or state health coverage (like
Medi-Cal or Medicaid), then the expenses may be higher.
She may or may not be employed and that too could impact
on what adoptive parents might be asked to provide
in terms of financial assistance. The range of total
adoption costs in this office which includes legal
and court fees, home study fees and birth mother living
and medical expenses is between $10,000 and $22,000.
Before you match with any prospective birth parent
we will happily project the estimated total cost of
the adoption for your prior approval and discuss means
of keeping the adoption costs within your budget.
Are
any of our adoption expenses tax deductible?
In
May 2001 the tax laws pertaining to the deductibility
of adoption expenses were changed greatly much to the
delight of adoption attorneys and their clients across
the United States. The new law, which applies to adoptions
which become "final" after December 31, 2001,
provides for a $10,000.00 tax credit for "allowed" adoption
expenses (doubling the previous credit of $5,000.00)
in cases of independent and agency adoptions. It also
raises from $75,000.00 to $150,000.00 the "adjusted
gross income" base which must be met before phase
out of the right to enjoy the full tax credit begins.
The tax credit is still not available in stepparent
and relative adoptions. The law also continues to apply
to unsuccessful/failed adoptions. Among the other provisions
of the revised law Congress eliminated the sunset provision
on the old tax credit which would have caused the tax
credit to expire in December 2001 and indexed the credit
for inflation. The new law also increases the amount
of money which employer may provide to employees tax
free to help subsidize adoption efforts. To determine
how much of your adoption expenses will be allowed
as a tax credit on your federal income tax return please
contact your tax preparer or accountant as the new
adoption tax credit law will make a major financial
impact for the better on the vast majority of adoptive
families.
How
can we control the outlay of money in our adoption?
In
January 2006, through the auspices of Adoption Assurance,
adoptive families were, after years of the absence
of adoption insurance on the market, able to consider
purchasing adoption insurance IF they were working
with a very select group of adoption attorneys. Those
attorneys whose clients could qualify for adoption
insurance, were members of the Academy of California
Adoption Lawyers and the American Academy of Adoption
Attorneys. As the President Elect of the Academy
of California Adoption Lawyers and a Member of the
American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, clients of
our offices may avail themselves of adoption insurance
by contacting the insurance agency at www.adoptionassurance.com.
While
many lawyers and agencies have the adoptive parents
give money as needed directly to the birth mother on
her demand, our office feels that doing so is just
begging for trouble. There are laws in California and
in all states where adoption is permitted which define
what may and may not be paid to a birth mother. There
may be instances which arise (usually they come up
just before the mother's due date) where the adoptive
couple may feel as though they have no choice but to
pay for birth mother expenses which are legally questionable
especially if the birth mother has grown accustomed
to being paid upon her demand directly by the adoptive
parents. By utilizing our services in disbursing funds
to the birth mother through our client trust account,
we can make the "hard calls" and keep our
clients and the birth parents within the confines of
the law without damaging their relationship. If the
birth mother seeks an improper payment, we will professionally
and courteously explain the reason why that sum cannot
be paid. She may not like our response but it is likely
that she will not blame you for it. As all money paid
in the adoption process must be accounted for in writing
to the Court before finalization, care must be taken
about what bills are paid and to whom. We are here
to assist you with regard to all financial transactions
in the adoption process and to assure compliance with
all applicable laws.
How
will we know if our birth mother is legitimate?
As
an attorney experienced in adoption practice I will
guide you in evaluating the quality of any prospective
birth mother. Obviously we will want proof that she
is pregnant and independent confirmation of other vital
statistics about her. We strive to verify all background
information provided by the birth parents. All birth
mothers who work with clients of this office must be
tested for HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases,
Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, herpes, drugs, and alcohol.
Test results and medical records are always provided
to our clients. Our experience in handling adoptions
aids us in spotting and pointing out any "warning
flags" which arise as we screen potential birth
mothers. If the birth mother does not live in California
we will recommend that she be interviewed by counsel
where she lives so that local counsel may give us independent
impressions of the birth mother. Other areas of importance
in the evaluation of birth parents will be discussed
during our initial consultation. While nobody can guarantee
that a birth mother will follow through with her adoption
plan, we can help improve your odds of matching with
a birth mother who will keep her commitment to the
adoption plan.
How
and what do you charge for your legal services?
My
firm charges flat fees and in some instances "not
to exceed" fees for professional services in connection
with your adoption. We do not charge hourly as it has
been our experience that when clients are charged hourly
for adoption services the bills can go through the
roof! We do not charge one time special "charges" such
as postage fee deposits, long distance telephone fee
deposits and advertising pool charges. We do not make
clients pay us an extra fee if we locate the birth
mother for them. We charge hourly for our initial consultation
appointment only. Unlike many adoption attorneys who
charge a flat fee for initial consultations which can
vary from $750 to $1,500 regardless of the time spent
in consultation, we charge a very reasonable and discounted
hourly rate for initial consultations which typically
last between one hour and three hours. Consultations
are spent with me alone - you are not shunted off to
others in my office to consult with about various subjects
after meeting with me. You do not have to complete
an application before meeting with me. You do not have
to deposit funds with my office that are nonrefundable
before the initial consultation. Payment for the initial
consultation is due at the conclusion of the consultation
appointment.
What
about the birth father?
The
stories which make the news and talk shows always seem
to focus on birth fathers. Our office is concerned,
as are our clients, about the rights of birth fathers.
We want to create lasting and proper adoptions. We
can only do that by affording birth fathers their rights
and when appropriate lawfully terminating those rights.
We seek at the earliest stage possible to determine
the attitude and legal standing of the birth father.
We prefer to obtain his cooperation and consent and
to have him provide us with as much information as
he can about himself and his family. If he does not
wish to be involved and is not married to the birth
mother we present him with ways in which he may end
his involvement even before the baby is born. But we
do not hide the facts about the birth father or pretend
that we do not know where he is. We do not want to
work with birth mothers who pretend that they don't
remember who the birth father is so that they can avoid
dealing with him. We encourage birth mothers to be
honest about the birth father and to assist us so that
we may properly terminate his rights or obtain his
consent to the adoption plan.
Should
we work with a facilitator or other unlicensed intermediary
to help us locate a baby to adopt?
There
are a number of facilitators in the adoption field
who advertise/claim that they have done thousands of
placements in record time, that they can assist anyone
in locating a child to adopt, and that they have a
100% success rate. This is similar to those advertised
magic potions which claim to grow hair or the magic
pills which promise to help you lose weight overnight.
These promises sound good, but are they true? Or are
they too good to be true? Like other claims that we
wish to be true, these claims often made by facilitators
and other unlicensed intermediaries deserve investigation.
Facilitators are not licensed in any state in the United
States. California is one of the few states which has
any regulations pertaining to facilitators at all,
and there the only requirement in California requires
facilitators to post a minimum bond. There are no educational
requirements and no minimal standards for these intermediaries
and facilitators to meet. Facilitators are not monitored
and are not accountable to any licensing entity and
their activities are illegal in many states!
1.
Monitoring: No one monitors whether facilitators
produce any results. No one monitors whether their advertising
is true. No one knows how many families do not find the
child they seek. No one knows how many families are badgered
into adopting a child whose background they are not comfortable
with; or how many promises are made which cannot legally
be kept. Facilitators have no license to lose. Some deliberately
mislead you into believing that they are licensed adoption
agencies instead of acknowledging that they are neither
licensed nor regulated nor are they agencies. Some have
misleading business names suggesting that they are affiliated
with lawyers or are an "agency" or "organization" in
an effort to appear more legitimate. But closer inspection
of the facts will help you discern that these are all "come
ons" to convince you to pay a sizeable retainer
for their "services." When clients are unhappy
or feel defrauded by these individuals there is no licensing
board to complain to and the only recourse is to file
a suit for fraud which is likely to be a costly and not
necessarily effective use of your limited financial resources
and time. When you work with a licensed agency or an
attorney not only are problems are much less common,
but their actions are monitored by the licensing Boards
or State Bars of the state in which they practice.
2.
No educational requirements: Facilitators often
act as intermediaries between the birth mother/father
and the adoptive family, stating that they collect
background information, screen adoption leads and
set up the processing. Since there are no standards
as to what a facilitator should know to do the work
they purport to do competently, (in fact many have
received their experience only because they once
adopted a child themselves), they are unable to recognize
the complicated issues of law which may present themselves
in most if not all adoption plans. For example there
are presumptions in law pertaining to birth fathers,
birth parent issues, American Indian issues, fee
issues, federal and individual unique state adoption
laws, birth mother expense issues, relinquishment
and surrender issues which differ state to state.
Facilitators cannot address these issues which may
impact on your adoption plan from the outset with
you and those who do so are violating the law by
practicing law without a license.
3.
Facilitators are outlawed in many states. These states
are attempting to protect their citizens from exploitation.
Legislators recognize that facilitators and other such
intermediaries are unlicensed and unregulated. They recognize
that facilitators often charge exorbitant fees to help
you contact a pregnant woman who may not even be seriously
considering placing her child for adoption. They recognize
that facilitators may lead you astray by erroneous information,
misleading statements or lack of knowledge. Use of a
facilitator in a state which prohibits facilitators at
best jeopardizes your adoption or at worst, makes the
adoption plan you have toiled with in earnest impossible
to complete.
The
bottom line, as far as this office is concerned,
is that adoptive parents need to be prudent and informed
consumers. Do your homework before you sign up. But most
of all, avoid the temptation to be lured into a contract
with those promise makers who lack the experience, education,
licensure and ability to meaningfully and legally assist
you. It would be my pleasure to share more information
about these matters with you during our initial consultation
or upon receipt of your call.
Will
we be able to reach you when we need you?
I
am available my clients twenty-four hours a day, seven
days a week and every day of the year. All of my clients
are provided with my personal pager number and home
telephone number. Clients can also reach me by electronic
mail and through my office voice mail system after
hours. When you need to speak with me, I am there for
you. Your telephone calls will be promptly returned.
Your written correspondence and e-mail will likewise
be promptly and completely answered.
Which
adoption attorney should I hire?
When
you evaluate which attorney to hire you may wish to
consider whether the attorney has experience in adoption,
whether the attorney is also an adoptive parent and
whether being an adoptive parent may provide the attorney
with extra insight into your concerns and desires.
Is the attorney a member of recognized organizations
of adoption attorneys such as the American Academy
of Adoption Attorneys, the Academy of California Adoption
Lawyers and the Academy of California Family Formation
Lawyers (membership requirements of which are quite
strict and the practice standards required for membership
are higher than the typical State Bar requirements
for attorney conduct)? If the attorney you are considering
is not a member of these academies, you should beware.
Either the attorney does not meet the ethical standards
for admission or the attorney may lack the experience
to qualify for admission. Finally be wary of the attorney
who is not accessible to you--who loads the front office
with people who run interference for him or her. In
our office, I personally handle all adoption matters.
My clients do not hire my staff to do their work--they
hire me. We don't forget that--don't let the attorney
you hire forget it either!
We
don't live in California. Can we still use your services?
On
September 30, 2002 California became even more adoption
friendly when Governor Gray Davis signed Assembly Bill
746 into law permitting non-residents to have access
to the adoption courts of the state of California.
Under the newly enacted law, non-residents who enter
into an adoption plan with birth parents residing in
California may finalize their adoptions in California
even if the adoptive parents do not own or rent in
California and even if they come into the state solely
to pick up their adoptive child. This change in the
law may also be helpful in cases where the alleged
birth father would have greater rights in a state other
than California as California law’s concerning
birth fathers tend to favor the adoptive parents over
the birth father especially if he has not been meaningfully
involved and financially supportive of the mother during
her pregnancy.
The residency requirement for birth
parents is that the birth parent must be a resident of the state of California
at the time after the baby is born when she or they either: 1.) Relinquish to
a licensed California adoption agency or 2.) When they sign a consent to adoption.
Adoptive parents who live outside of California may then petition to finalize
their adoption in California. When the adoption was ultimately finalized in California,
the adoptive parents would not have to “re-finalize” in
their home state!
The new law requires non-resident adoptive
parents to present a completed and current home study report conducted and approved
by a licensed adoption agency or other authorized resource in the state in which
the petitioners reside (their “home” state). If the home study’s
contents meet the standards required by the California Department of Social Services
which defines and regulates the contents of acceptable home studies, the placement
would likely be approved. The out of state home study will then be reviewed and,
if appropriate, approved by a local California agency or a representative office
of the California Department of Social Services.
Pursuant to existing California law,
the adoptive parents would be required to return to California with the child
who is the subject of the adoption petition for finalization of the adoption
before a judge in court approximately 180 days after the placement of the child
into their custody for adoption purposes.
For
further information or to schedule an appointment,
I invite you to call me toll-free at 1-800-795-2367,
or e-mail me at adoptlaw@ix.netcom.com. |
