ADOPTION LAW PENNSYLVANIA

Adoption law in Pennsylvania can be strict to some. The Pennsylvania state law governs all domestic relations regarding adoption in that particular state. Those individuals or couples in the State of Pennsylvania that wish to adopt a child need to be aware of the adoption laws of that state.

The adoption laws of Pennsylvania state that the report must be filed in either the county that the adoptive parents reside in or the county that the adoptee resides in to authorize voluntary relinquishment of any rights to that child as well as the filing of an intention to adopt the child. When this occurs the court will choose a representative for the child and an attorney is not allowed to represent the adoptive parents or birth parents and the child at the same time. The adoptive parents may also be subjected to pay for the full amount of the costs of the proceeding.

After a child has been cared for by an agency for at least three days the birth parents can petition the court to end their rights to the child for eternity. The agency’s consent to accept the child is all that is required thereafter. If the adopting individual is a couple, the child must be in their custody for a period of no less than thirty days and must have filed an order of intention to adopt the child. In this case, the birth parents still must file a petition with the court in order to give up all rights to the child and the adoptive parents must file a consent form in order to accept the rights of the child. The court will choose a date and time for the hearing to take place and the petitioners must appear in order for consideration to be given in the matter.

A minimum of ten days of notice should be given to the person who filed the petition to allow that person proper time to arrange their dealings in order to make it to the hearing. This notice is generally placed in several local newspapers in order to ensure that the petitioner is aware of the date and time of the hearing. If the mother or father of the child did not sign a petition to give up their rights to the child but do not come into the court for the hearing to object to the termination of their rights to the child then the court may decide to terminate those parental rights.

The hearing proceeds and the judge will hear all pertinent information regarding the child and the relinquishment or attainment of the child and will make the ruling. After the ruling, however, the birth parents may keep a medical history of themselves on file for use at a later date. This is a very helpful tool for the child in the future. The adoptive parents do not ever have to give out their name or make it known for public record.

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