Adoption Law: A Step-by-Step Guide

Agenda / Content Covered

1. Adoption Law Essentials
   10:00 - 11:05, Stanton Phillips
   1. Overview of Adoptions and Options
   2. Home Studies and Reports
   3. Federal Influences
      1. US Supreme Court Cases
      2. Adoption and Safe Families Act
      3. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
      4. Howard Metzenbaum Multiethnic Placement Act
      5. The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
      6. Indian Child Welfare Act
      7. Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act
      8. Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Enforcement Act (UCCJEA)
      9. Federal Adoption Tax Credit
2. The Adoption Process
   11:05 - 12:10, Karen S. Law
   1. Preparation of Pre- and Post-Placement Reports
   2. The Interrelated Roles of Social Worker and Attorney
   3. Conducting a Thorough Background Check
   4. The Adoption Home Study
   5. Federal, State, and Local Services Available to All Parties Involved
   6. Medical Care and Insurance Coverage for Birth Mother and Child
   7. Responsibilities of the Guardian Ad Litem
   8. Unique Considerations When Adopting Special Needs Children
   9. Third-Party Adoptions
3. Interstate and Intercountry Adoption
   12:25 - 1:30, Stanton Phillips, Karen S. Law
   1. What is the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC)?
   2. Dealing With Conflicts Between State Laws
   3. Navigating Multistate Adoption Procedures
   4. The Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2021
   5. The Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000
   6. Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoptions
   7. Universal Accreditation Act
   8. Process for Domestic Adoption of Foreign-Born Children
   9. Same-Sex Couples and International Adoption
   10. The Impact of COVID-19 on the Intercountry Adoption Process
4. Terminating Parental Rights (w/ Sample Documents)
   2:00 - 3:00, Juliana Gaita
   1. General Requirements and Considerations
   2. Obtaining Confirmed Consent and Surrender of Birth Parents
   3. Handling Notice Requirements
   4. Grounds for Involuntary Termination and Filing Complaints
   5. Issues Handled by State Common Pleas Courts
   6. When Default Proceedings May Move Forward
   7. Sample Summary Judgment Forms
5. What to Do If Something Goes Wrong
   3:00 - 3:45, Stanton Phillips
   1. Rights of the Biological Parents vs. Adoptive Parents
   2. Parental Rights: What Does Due Process Mean?
   3. Proving a Parent is Unfit in Contested Adoptions
   4. Tackling Third-Party Challenges
   5. Dissolution/Disruption of Adoption
   6. Following Steps After a Withdrawal of Consent
   7. Handling an Appeal of the Adoption Decree
   8. Contested Adoption
6. Ethical Guidelines in Adoption Law
   4:00 - 5:00, Lance D. Rich
   1. Conflicts of Interest
   2. Confidentiality
   3. Guidelines for Attorney Fees
   4. Rules of Professional Conduct

Accreditation Details:

Juliana Gaita is managing partner and founder of Boca Family Lawyers in Boca Raton, Florida. Ms. Gaita handles all aspects of family law, real estate law, juvenile dependency and adoptions. She has served as an attorney ad litem, representing children in custody proceedings. Over the years, Ms. Gaita has spent countless hours advocating for children and/or their caregivers, helping parents to make birth plans, and helping families to finalize adoptions. She is board certified in adoption law by The Florida Bar and a member of the Florida Adoption Council. Ms. Gaita earned her B.A. degree from Boston College and her J.D. degree from Northeastern University School of Law, Boston, Massachusetts.

 

Karen S Law is an adoption and immigration attorney practicing in Virginia. Her immigration practice is national. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law in 1985 and became licensed in Virginia in that same year. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Virginia State Bar, and the Virginia Women Attorneys Association. She also co-chaired the International Adoptions Committee for the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys for three years and served on the AILA International Operations Liaison Committee for two years. Working with those professional associations, she submitted comments to USCIS on proposed rules, operating procedures and policy memoranda. She also has assisted with drafting federal and state legislation and has provided comments and technical expertise to legislators. She was designated as a 2013 Angel in Adoption by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption. In cooperation with the Loudoun County Department of Family Services and the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, she has co-chaired the annual celebration of adoption in Loudoun County, Virginia, Loudoun Adoption Day, for eleven years. She often speaks at national conferences on intercountry adoption issues and publishes articles on those same topics. She enjoys volunteering at orphanages throughout the world, including South Africa, Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico, Belize, and Jamaica.

Stanton Phillips limits his practice to adoption law and assisted reproduction in Virginia and DC. Practicing under the name Adoption Legal Services, he has successfully completed more than 3,500 adoption cases during the past 38 years. Mr. Phillips represents adoptive parents, birth parents and adoption agencies, or acts as guardian ad litem for the adoptee. He handles private, agency, interstate, intrastate, special needs and international adoptions and has represented numerous adoption agencies on adoption matters. Mr. Phillips is a frequent lecturer and a media resource on adoption law. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, where he has served as a trustee and officer. Mr. Phillips has written a chapter entitled "Adoption Law, Procedure and Practice," in Family Law and Practice and was a contributing writer to Adoption Law and Practice and a dozen other books and legal manuals. He participated in drafting and working with the Virginia Legislature on creating the 1995, 2006 and 2007 major revisions to Virginia's adoption statutes and has provided input for various statutes since then. Mr. Phillips also has served as chair for the Advisory Council for the Congressional Coalition for Adoption Institute and as chair for the D.C. Superior Court Adoption Committee. He is a past recipient of the U.S. Congress Angels in Adoption award. In four of his cases, the children’s adoptions were finalized in the White House with the president and first lady for Adoption Day. Mr. Phillips earned his B.A. degree from the American University and his J.D. degree from George Mason University School of Law.

Lance D Rich is a shareholder at the law firm of Kirton McConkie PC in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is licensed to practice law in Utah and Wyoming. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School where he was a Bergstrom Scholar who received specialized training in child welfare cases. Mr. Rich handles mainly adoption cases for adoptive parents, birth parents, and adoption agencies. Having adopted three children, he has a personal as well as a professional perspective on the adoption process. Mr. Rich is an active proponent of adoption and serves on the Board of Directors for Utah Foster Care and as the vice chair on the Advisory Board for United for Adoption. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Academy of Adoption and Assisted-Reproduction Attorneys, as a co-chair of the Academy's Agency Committee, as a co-chair of the Adoption Ethics Task Force, and on several other committees and task forces within the Academy. Mr. Rich also serves on the West Regional Council of the Nation Council for Adoption. He has previously served on the Board of Directors and served as president of the Utah Adoption Council. He has been a frequent presenter on a variety of adoption topics for conferences and seminars sponsored by organizations such as the Utah State Bar, the Utah Adoption Council, National Business Institute, the Academy of Adoption and Assisted-Reproduction Attorneys, United for Adoption, and the International Society of Family Law.