How it works
- Select an Attorney
- Attorney Estimate / Final Approval
- Attorney and Client Work Together
- Monthly Payments Start
- Legal Work Stops / Case Closed
Welcoming a child into your family is a cause for celebration and should be a relatively simple process. Unfortunately, it rarely is, especially in non-traditional families. Adoption procedures can change from state to state and family to family. A good attorney can help your family navigate the law.
Most adoptions are done by step-parents or second-parents, when a spouse or partner decides to adopt their spouse or partner’s existing child. Second-parent adoptions are common for same-sex couples, when one may be the child’s biological parent but both wish to be legal parents. A good lawyer can make this process simple and fast, providing advice and guidance on navigating paperwork and post-placement studies.
Adoptions from adoption agencies can be more challenging. It’s definitely recommended to get a lawyer when going through this process.
This process can be especially difficult for same-sex parents-to-be, as there are only non-discrimination laws in 8 states prohibiting adoption agencies from refusing to place children in homes due to the sexual orientation of the parents. In fact, 10 states explicitly allow such discrimination.
States in which LGBTQ+ parents are protected:
- California (gender identity protections included)
- Nevada
- Michigan (gender identity protections included) (except in the case that the adoption agency has religious reasons for refusing same-sex couples. You’ll definitely need a lawyer in Michigan.)
- Maryland
- New Jersey (gender identity protections included)
- New York (gender identity protections included)
- Rhode Island(gender identity protections included)
- Massachusetts
States in which LGBTQ+ discrimination in adoptions is allowed
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Kansas
- Oklahoma
- Texas
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Alabama
- Virginia
- South Carolina
A good family lawyer is the best defense against complicated paperwork and ensuring your new child is properly fit into your legally recognized family. Justice For Me works to make lawyers available to those who need them. We pair clients with attorneys and provide mutually beneficial, affordable payment plans for up-front retainers that the client may not be able to afford all at once.
We know you value your loved ones and want the law to recognize your family, which is why we work to get you the legal help you need.
