Adoption of a Child

Welcome to the Familybuilding law firm. We have been assisting families throughout California and across America in the adoption process for four decades. We are here to support you and answer every question you have about adoption and your desire to adopt a newborn child. We will take you through a series of Steps to provide you with the truths about adoption. Our goal is to educate and encourage you so any myths and fears about adoption are answered and refuted. Our goal is to encourage you and walk with you through the entire adoption process; from the moment you begin outreach to the moment you stand in court and hear the judge decree the adoption! At Familybuilding law firm, we see a lot of crises in the world and therefore children in need of good, loving families like yours.

Here we are focusing on adopting a newborn child through the process called Independent (“private”) and Agency Adoption.

First, we share a perspective as you begin, or continue, your adoption journey. Adoption does not happen because things are stable in the birth parent(s)’ lives, adoption happens because of instability. That instability generally does not happen in an instant but is due to a progression of choices, trauma over two to three generations. Having that perspective helps us together engage in and have a heart for not only the children being placed, but for the birth parent(s) who are placing the child; they have no other choice! Generational degeneration caused by the sudden loss of parents, wars, sickness, death, abuse, neglect, poverty, addiction and resulting criminal behavior, have created a great need for us together to step in and bring restoration to a broken generational line through adoption! That is an important perspective to acknowledge. 

There is more crisis than we are reaching through adoption. This is one of the first myths we want to address.

Myth about Adoption: There are not enough children to adopt in America.

Truth about Adoption:

  • There are 43,000 children in the California Dependency/foster care system
  • There are 380,000 Children in the U.S. dependency/foster care System.
  • There are as many as 6,000 newborns being taken into the California dependency/foster care system each year, with approximately 8,000 testing positive for a prenatal substance.
  • There are approximately 210 hospitals in California that have labor and delivery wards, which means on average over 28 children per year are being placed in the foster care system rather than going home from the hospital with their birth parents.
  • There are an estimated 2.6 million children being raised by grandparents in the U.S.
  • There are as many as 1.1 million abortions in the U.S. each year (one in every four pregnancies).
  • There are 2.2 million children being raised by single mothers in California (34% of California’s children). 
  • There are 7.3 million single mothers raising children in the U.S. (one in every four children).

Step One:

Follow this link to listen to a recording on the Truths About Adoption. This will answer many of your immediate questions and encourage you to take the next step in Adoption.

 

FAQ’s

Q: Where do you find the birth moms?
Organically! By telling your entire sphere of influence of people you know, from the time of your childhood to date, someone in that sphere will know someone who is dealing with a crisis or unplanned pregnancy, considering abortion, or pregnant and does not want their child to go into foster care.

Q: How long will it take from retaining the law office to taking the baby home?
Depending on your preferences, the average is anywhere from 6 months to a year. The more open you are the more situations your profile will be presented to.

Q: How much will it cost?
The average cost of an adoption through Family Building Law Firm and how we direct the process, can be as low as $20,000. It could be more or less depending on the details of your specific case, but it doesn’t have to be! We want you to do the least expensive, most effective adoption possible

Q: Can I get a grant?
Yes, we will refer you to organizations such as Gift of Adoption. But first, understand the truth about the costs of adoption before believing you cannot afford it or need help. Adoption Tax Credits help reduce the costs of adoption, which currently total approximately $18,000 for those who qualify.

Q: What if the birth mom changes her mind?
This is the biggest fear of most adoptive couples. Less than 5% of the birth mothers we work with change their mind. The love, respect and care a birth mom receives makes a huge difference. Counseling is also available and encouraged.

Q: Do you offer support throughout the process?
Yes, we have counselors/therapists we work with who are available to support adoptive couples as well as birth parents.

Q: Do I have to have/complete a Home Study?
A Home Study is not absolutely necessary to start an adoption. If you locate an adoption opportunity outside of California, Interstate adoptions do require a Home Study. Having said that, if you locate a situation where the birth mother is out of state and you don’t have a home study, we can move things pretty quickly to see that you get home studied in time. We encourage all our families to have a home study in place as it opens you up to a wider range of options. There are other advantages to having a home study we will consult with you about, however don’t let that deter you from starting to do outreach; if the birth mother is within California, you do not need a home study to take the baby home from the hospital and begin the adoption process.

Q: What if I get pregnant?
It happens more than you know ☺
You may choose to put a hold on showing your profile and doing organic outreach until you decide to remove the hold. If you are in the process of adopting, there is no change in the adoption process just because you have become pregnant. Any change would be your choice.

Q: Can you break down the cost of a typical adoption?

  • (An approximation, not a quote)
  • Legal 5,000-10,000
  • Adoption Service Provider (Required by the State of California) 1,000-2,000
  • Home Study 2,500-5,000
  • Birth Parent Representation 1,000-3,000
  • Birth Parent Expenses (Different with each case and must be legal and birth related)
  • Birth Parent Support 2,500

Q: How does the tax credit work?
Please check with your CPA or go to the internet and search Adoption Tax Credit.

Adoption Myths and Truths

Myth: The birth mother will take her baby back.
Truth: Many people are concerned about adopting because they think that the birth mother will change her mind and they will have to give the child back. The truth is that less than two (one) percent of all birth mothers change their minds. Many report that adoption offers their children a chance at a better life in a stable family situation.

Myth: There are few if any adoption opportunities/ There are no children available for adoption.
Truth: We want to maximize your dream of adoption by you locating the woman who is dealing with a crisis or unplanned pregnancy “organically”That is, through your network of contacts and relationships. There is crisis everywhere around us, including your network of relationships. If everyone in your sphere of influence knows you want to adopt, you will connect with an expectant mother

Myth: The birth father has rights and he will claim rights to the baby after we have adopted him.
Truth: Less than five percent of birth fathers formally contest or object to an adoption. Of those five percent, less than half of those will choose to go to trial and fight the termination of their parental rights. We take an approach to minimize the need for litigation. The California Supreme Court established the standard we use over 30 years ago and asks: whether an alleged father has promptly come forward and demonstrated a full commitment to his parental responsibilities, emotionally, financially and otherwise to the birth mother and the unborn child, during the pregnancy. A very low percentage of the alleged fathers can meet this standard. If they could, and had been providing that support, the birth mother would likely not be placing the child for adoption! Obtaining information about the alleged biological father at the very outset of meeting birth mother is therefore essential. This is one of the most significant issues we focus on in adoption at the Familybuilding law firm.

Myth: Adoption is too financially draining. It will cost more than $50,000.
Truth: An adoption can be effectively accomplished for under $20,000. It depends upon how the birth mother and child are located. We want to maximize your dream of adoption by you locating the woman who is dealing with a crisis or unplanned pregnancy “organically”. The way in which adopting parents locate the expectant and birth mother is usually the single greatest expense in adoption! You can also adopt through Foster Care for “0” dollars! Moreover, (2008) federal law provides(d) a tax credit of approximately (up to) $18,000 for adopting parents, depending upon their income.

Myth: It’s easier to adopt through the County/Child Protection Services.
Truth: CPS is a large organization, with overburdened caseworkers dealing with way too many children and babies. A private/Independent adoption is a better adoption on many levels, as the birth mother chooses the adopting parents she wants and keeps the government out of that process. This is much more empowering to all parties and allows the child to grow knowing their birth mother chose to place them as opposed to the government.

Myth: We only want to adopt a newborn, because the child will have less emotional issues
Truth: Once families adopt and/or get involved in fostering or adopting a child(ren), many find there is room in their hearts for children of any age and they often choose to expand their family to include older children.