Adoption

What is adoption?

Adoption is the legal process through which an individual or individuals assume parental rights and responsibilities for a child who is not their biological offspring.

What are the different forms of adoption?

Common types of adoption include:

• Domestic adoption: The adoption of a child from the same country in which you reside;

• International adoption: The adoption of a child from a country in which you do not reside;

• Public adoption: The adoption of a child in the permanent care of a children’s aid society;

• Private adoption: The adoption of a child absent the involvement of a children’s aid society. That said, lawyers and adoption agencies are typically involved;

• Stepchild adoption: The adoption of your spouse’s child;

• Kinship adoption: The adoption of a relative;

• Open adoption: The adoption of a child involving some form of ongoing contact and communication with the child’s birth parents or someone else who is significant in the child’s life;

• Closed adoption: The adoption of a child where there is no form of ongoing contact or communication with the child’s birth parents or anyone else who is significant in the child’s life.

What is open adoption?

Open adoption is a form of adoption where there is some form of ongoing contact and communication with the child’s birth parents or someone else who is significant in the child’s life.

In an open adoption, the level of openness can vary widely and is typically agreed upon by all parties involved, including the birth parents, adoptive parents, and sometimes the child, depending on their age and level of understanding. Some open adoptions may involve regular visits, phone calls, emails, or letters exchanged between the birth parents and adoptive parents, while others may involve occasional updates through a third party or mediated communication.

The benefits of open adoption can include:

• Greater transparency and honesty: Open communication between birth parents and adoptive parents can help ensure that everyone involved has access to important information and feels more secure in their relationship;

• Continued connection for the child: Open adoption allows the child to have ongoing access to information about their birth family and to develop a sense of identity and belonging that includes both their biological and adoptive families;

• Reduced stigma and shame: Open adoption can help remove the secrecy often associated with adoption and reduce feelings of shame or stigma for birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted children;

• Increased support network: Open adoption can provide additional sources of support for both birth parents and adoptive parents, as they navigate the complexities of the adoption process and parenting.

Personal Experience

At Inspire Law, we have lived experience with respect to adoption. We know of the joy, the heartache, the triumphs and the challenges. We also know of the need for a strong support system to make it through. You are consequently encouraged to visit our “Helpful Resources” page with a view to adding to your network. Inspire Law is always here for you too.

Request

Our goal at Inspire Law is to help, legally and beyond. That said, in the event that your personal lived experience has caused you to happen upon valuable adoption-related resources, please email us and let us know so that we may inform others as appropriate; or perhaps comment on our social media pages. … It takes a village to raise a child, and we would be thrilled if you would form part of our village.

Another goal that we have at Inspire Law is to help birth parents as best we can. Know of a resource? Please reach out; or perhaps comment on our social media pages. … Together, we can make a difference and help add some light to each other’s lives.