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The Adoption Process

Adoption is a Legal Process

Federal and State laws are written to protect the independent family unit which automatically is enforced at the birth of each child. Legal Rights and Custodial Care are the paired values that establish the basis of the family unit for purposes of the collective good of society as each family actively assumes this responsibility.

Adoption is a legal process that protects the birth parent's decision for their adoption plan and protects the adopting parents once the adoption is legally finalized. Completing the adoption process is ensuring each member of the adoption process is legally determined and protected in their decisions for what is best for the adopted child. The term "Adoption Triad" comes out of this legal and relational connection unique to adoption consisting of the Birth Parents, Adopting Parent(s) and the adopted child. It is a lifetime decision that exists in its uniqueness for each adoption triad member.

Home Study

Completing a Home Study is the first formal step after deciding to become adoptive parents. This is the legal documentation required for all domestic adoptions in California. This ensures each family has the highest potential to care for a child to adulthood and remain connected as family throughout their lifetime. By getting to know you, this study will help us mindfully match a special child to you. The written Home Study and Family Available Letter become the tools that represents you to be used by adoption workers responsible for the children looking for placement.

Matching Your Family With a Child

While training and interviewing through the home study process, we are learning your strengths and vision for what child or sibling group you are interested in. Once you are clear on the child you hope to be matched to, we review the current placement possibilities. We help you create a Family Available Letter that is ready for presentation to birth parents determining their own adoption plan. Awaiting the match of a child is a difficult phase as the 'Hurry up and Wait' begins. Waiting to find the right child is hard, but we continue preparing you with routine check-ins and educating you for the challenges ahead.

Fitting Into Your Family

The daily care you provide should be what you have hoped for when looking ahead to this time. Your bonding to the child and the child's attachment to you occurs within the natural routines of meeting the child's needs and making care decisions on their behalf with the guidance of the medical professionals.

During this time of adjustment and integration of the child into your family, we provide regular support time with you in your home. We provide the required supervisory care by meeting with you and the child at least 4 times during the 180 days of supervisory care. Hand in Hand Foundation adoption workers and family therapists are here to help you.

Adoptive Placement

California state law requires that a child be freed for adoption before signing the Adoptive Placement Agreement (APA) for agency relinquishment adoptions. This can take variability in time based on the legal process and availability of all possible parents to voluntarily sign documentation. In some circumstances the court action of termination of parent's rights must be obtained. Once the California Adoptions Bureau acknowledges all freeing documentation has been received, the APA can be signed. This starts the time for the 180 days of the child being 'in placement of your care', not the day the child came home from the hospital. The APA provides legal documentation for purposes of providing all levels of care and establishes a legal relationship sometimes required in circumstances such air travel or medical care.

Adoptive Supervision Support

California state law requires that a child be legally placed with you for at least six months before an adoption is finalized. This six-month period gives us the ability to inform the court of our consent to the adoption in the form of a court report that is required to accompany the adoption petition for the finalization. The whole process from the day of bringing the child home to the actual finalization date can take up to 9 to 12 months. We use this as a good season for family bonding.

Being approved for adoption by Hand In Hand Foundation allows us to make you our agency "Foster Parent" for private adoption during the short custodial period until the adoptive placement documents have been signed. Most children start out in your home for the short custodial fostering placement based on the birth parents signed consent to provide necessary custodial care usually at the time of their discharge from the hospital. The custodial fostering is different than the foster to adopt process for children out of the social services. Once freed, the Adoptive Placement Agreement takes over with similar written language that affirms your responsibility as the identified care giver. As the Agency we remain legally responsible for the child and are mandated to supervise our entrusting you in the initial custodial and for the duration of adoptive placement care until the finalization is completed.

Finalization

This last step is the most rewarding for all involved. Since adoption is a legal process, it is possible in California for you as the petitioner to file all court documents "In Propria Persona" or shortened to "Pro Per", meaning representing yourself without legal representation. We can help you complete and file all the necessary court forms and gather the required support documents to be attached for getting the court date on the court's calendar. In some cases where we cooperate with another agency we will walk you through the final process. Regardless of the steps it is a great time of celebration and we look forward to rejoicing with you!