Each state has unique laws surrounding adoption. This is why it is imperative that you do research about adoption in your state when you are starting the process because someone else’s experience won’t be the same as yours, particularly if they are adopting outside of Wisconsin. Be sure to reach out to an adoption professional if any of this is confusing to you or if you need clarification.
Termination of Parental Rights
How courts legally handle the termination of parental rights is different in each state and Wisconsin is one of just a handful of states that requires a court hearing to terminate parental rights which doesn’t occur until after the birth of the child, which can take weeks or even months in some situations. This means that the adoptive family taking the placement of a child is accepting risk. There are so many things at play, though a hearing must be scheduled within 30 days of the petition being filed, it can be longer.
When you’re adopting, you often hear things like “thirty days” and think that’s it, but there are a lot of things that have to be established. Legally, it has to be established if birth parents are voluntarily relinquishing their parental rights, and if at that time, they don’t consent, other hearings could be scheduled.
Birth Father Notification
In many states, there is a birth father registry and it is up to a man to check that if he thinks he has fathered a child within thirty days of that child’s birth to contest. However, in Wisconsin, birth fathers have to be notified and agencies work hard to do this in order to avoid a child’s placement taking longer than it should, but also, to protect a birth father who might not have been made aware that he had fathered a child that was being placed for adoption. To help with the ease of this, Wisconsin prefers that a Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgement (or a VPA) form is signed to establish paternity without having to go to court to find out who the father of a child is. This form does not establish custody in any way. This is a critical step in the adoption process to ensure less legal battles down the line.
Birth Parent Expenses
Adoption expenses that assist birth families are a part of the fee that adoptive parents pay and in my personal opinion, are important. The Wisconsin State Legislature is very clear about what adoptive families may be responsible for paying for. These are:
- Counseling for birth families (both pre and post placement)
- Maternity clothes up to the amount of $300 for the birth mother
- Local transportation expenses for birth parents who are going to appointments that are related to the adoption plan or pregnancy (think agency, counselor, and OB appointments).
- Services that birth parents receive from an adoption agency
- Medical and hospital care for the birth mother regarding the pregnancy and the medical care the child receives upon birth.
- Legal services surrounding the adoption
- Living expenses of the birth mother up to $5000.
These laws are created to protect both birth families and those that are adopting to ensure that the child is taken care of in a way that is clearly spelled out to adoptive families who can get their finances in order prior to the adoption process.
For more information about adoption laws in Wisconsin, click here.
Should you have further questions, please contact Adoption Choice, Inc for more information.
Photo credit: O’Flannery Studios