Difference between revisions of "Adopting Children"

This page provides an overview of adoption, describes the private adoption process and the process for adopting through the [http://www.gov.bc.ca/mcf/ Ministry for Children and Family Development], and provides contact information for the four adoption agencies licenced in British Columbia.

There are two basic types of adoption: adoption within a family unit by a relative or stepparent with the consent of the natural parent; and, adoption by a stranger through an agency. The first kind can be handled privately through the court process. The second kind requires either the involvement of the [http://www.bcadoption.com Adoptive Families Association of British Columbia], a contractor of the provincial Ministry for Children and Family Development, in the case of children in the care of the government, or the use of licenced adoption agency in the case of children not in government care. A list of the four adoption agencies licenced in British Columbia is provided at the end of this page.

The provincial ''[http://canlii.ca/t/84g5 Adoption Act]'' sets out the rules that guide parents and the courts through the adoption process. As in all matters involving children, the courts are primarily concerned with the best interests of the child, and s. 3 of the act sets a number of factors which should be considered in determining what is in the child's best interests.

#placement of a child by the child's natural parent or guardian with an non-family member adoptive parent or parents, called a direct placement,

#placement of a child, sometimes from outside Canada, by an adoption agency licenced by the Ministry.

In other words, an adopted child's new parents become that child's parents for all possible reasons and purposes. The adoptive parents take on all the rights and obligations the birth parents had, and, at the same time, the birth parent or parents lose all the rights and obligations they had with respect to the child. Among other things, the natural parent will lose rights such as being kept up to speed on developments in the child's health and schooling, and obligations such as a duty to pay child support. In a 2003 case of the Supreme Court, ''[http://canlii.ca/t/1pt0x Zien v. Woda]'', 2003 BCSC 1238 the court held that the adoption of a child by the mother's new partner stripped the natural father of his obligation to pay support, effective from the moment the adoption order was made.

#the child, if the child is twelve years of age or older, and

The act also says that a birth mother's consent to the adoption is only valid if she gives it ten or more days after the child's birth. The act also provides that a parent under the age of nineteen may give a valid consent.

*the child, if the child is twelve years of age or older,

Once these conditions have been met, the birth parent or guardian of the child will transfer the custody of the child to the adoptive parents in writing. The adoptive parents must notify the Director that they have received the adoptive child into their home within fourteen days. The Director must prepare a "post-placement report" within six months of the placement of the child in the new home.

Finally, the adoptive parents must prepare and file a Petition for the adoption of the child in the registry of the Supreme Court, under the [http://canlii.ca/t/8mcr Supreme Court Family Rules], once the child has spent six months in their care and custody. The filed Petition and supporting documents must be served on the Director. Part 3 of the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/84g5 Adoption Act]''  provides the details on the court process which will occur after this point, including: the documents which must be filed in court, who must be notified of the proceeding, and whether the application will require an oral hearing before a judge.

The process for relative adoptions is a lot easier, mostly because the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/84g5 Adoption Act]''  exempts this sort of adoptions from the notice requirements for direct placement adoptions. This means that the portion of the process described above, involving the Ministry and the Director of the Adoptions Division, can be bypassed, and no assessments or reports are required from the Director.

Stepparents may apply under this process for an order that they become "jointly" a parent of the child with his or her birth parent, usually the stepparent's spouse, the natural parent of the child. This is another form of relative adoption, and has the same effect as a normal adoption, meaning that the other natural parent (the one who isn't married to the step-parent) of the child loses his or her rights and obligations with respect to the child.

People who seek to adopt through the Ministry for Children and Family Development usually do so because they wish to adopt a child and but don't have any particular child in mind, as is the case in direct placements or relative adoptions.

Once the homestudy is complete, the adoption worker begins the process of matching available children to adopting parents. Once a match is found and the adopting parents accept the child, they begin pre-placement visits with the child. (If the child lives in a different community, the adopting parents will be asked to visit the child in his or her community.) For these first visits, a worker will be present. Over time, the adopting parents will begin to spend time alone with the child and have visits at their own home. If things go well, the adoption worker will make a decision about the suitability of the placement based what he or she considers to be in the child's best interests.

The steps between the initial application and the match are not particularly quick. In recognition of this, be prepared for homestudies to be repeated every twelve months. Criminal records checks and checks for previous ministry involvement are conducted every two years.

Note that if the child is between the ages of seven and twelve, an independent worker will meet with him or her to do a report on the child's views of the proposed adoption. This report will form part of the materials that the court will consider in hearing the adoption application. A child over the age of twelve must consent to the adoption.

The following four organizations are licenced by the provincial government under the Adoption Act to operate as adoption agencies. These are ''all'' of the licenced agencies in British Columbia.

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