Archives for December 2016

What to Expect at Your Home Study

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So you’ve started the adoption process and it’s your first time. You know you have to go through a “home study,” but you’re not certain the full extent of that part of the process. Does the case worker or agency representative want to know about the physical home, the emotional home, or all of the above? You guessed it—all of the above. And what exactly will it look like?

Typically, the first thing an agency representative or social worker will ask is why you want to adopt. Social workers want to be sure that you’re not going into it for the wrong reasons—that your marriage is in trouble and you think a baby will solve all your problems, for example. You’ll be asked questions about your family growing up—how were you parented and how do you feel about that? The social worker will likely inquire about your parenting philosophy, determine who the disciplinarian is your relationship, and identify the types of discipline that get meted out.

Your home study will include an assessment of the physical space of your home, so that the case worker knows that you’ll have adequate room for the child, and that the environment will be safe. There will be discussions of your financial status, in addition to conversations about who will provide care to the child. The case worker will also seek to learn about your health, so that there are assurances that you will be able to care for the child.

Contact Our Office

To set up an appointment, call us in Haddonfield at 856-429-5005 or in Woodbury at 856-845-2555. We can also be reached in Philadelphia at 215-563-2150 or by e-mail. For clients with personal injury or workers’ compensation claims, we offer a free initial consultation, and will represent you on a contingency basis, only charging attorney fees if we recover compensation for you.

Our offices are open weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Weekend and evening appointments may be arranged upon request. We will also come to your home or the hospital, if necessary.

What You Need to Know about Birth Mother Expenses

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If you are seeking to adopt an infant domestically, one of the issues you’ll have to eventually address involves what expenses of the birth mother you are willing to pay. The expenses you can be accountable for are governed by state law, so every jurisdiction is different. As a general rule, you can be asked to pay reasonable medical, legal and counseling fees. You may also be allowed to pay some living expenses.

Though many adoptive parents are willing to help defray living expenses, advocates for birth mothers say doing so puts an additional burden on birth parents, as it places pressure on the birth parents to put the child up for adoption, even though the law allows them to change their mind. In fact, under the laws of every state, a birth parent cannot be compelled to terminate parental rights and an adoptive parent cannot be required to adopt a child.

A critical question for many adoptive parents centers on what happens if the birth parents changes her mind after the birth of the child. Can the adoptive parents get their money back? As a practical matter, probably not. If the birth parent had the resources to meet her own expenses, it’s likely she wouldn’t have asked for assistance. As a legal matter, though, the answer depends on state law. Some states consider any financial assistance given to the birth mom to be a gift, which cannot be revoked or taken back. A small number of states actually do recognize the validity of a reimbursement agreement between biological and adoptive parents, but such a contract is seldom put in place.

Contact Our Office

To set up an appointment, call us in Haddonfield at 856-429-5005 or in Woodbury at 856-845-2555. We can also be reached in Philadelphia at 215-563-2150 or by e-mail. For clients with personal injury or workers’ compensation claims, we offer a free initial consultation, and will represent you on a contingency basis, only charging attorney fees if we recover compensation for you.

Our offices are open weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Weekend and evening appointments may be arranged upon request. We will also come to your home or the hospital, if necessary.

Expansion of Adoption Tax Credit

In April of this year Senators Casey (D-PA) and Blunt (R-MON) introduced Senate Bill 950 entitled the “Adoption Tax Credit Refundability Act of 2015.” The purpose of the Act would be to make the Adoption Tax Credit fully refundable as it had been several years ago. The need for this is that approximately one-half of the families who adopt from foster care are not high income earners and have tax liabilities that are so low that they can not benefit from the Adoption Tax Credit. By making it refundable these families who need assistance the most will be able to get it.

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