Meglan Law, LLC is well-equipped to handle various types of adoption cases within the St. Louis region. We can assist families who wish to adopt a child and facilitate adoptions for mothers who are faced with an unexpected pregnancy.
Adopting Through Child Welfare
There are many factors that may determine if a child should be removed from their family and placed in foster care. These include physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment, or having no parent or guardian available to take care of them or protect them. Any of these factors could lead to court involvement in a family.
International Adoption
There is growing interest in international adoption, where families in developed nations take children from underdeveloped or developing countries. Some pursue this option to widen their search for an addition to the family. While international adoption is extremely common, one of the most difficult aspects can be filing for citizenship for the child.
Private Adoption
Private adoptions are referred to as “independent” or “direct” adoptions because there is no middleman or agency involved, and the process can be much more streamlined than traditional adoption. This type of adoption is best suited for families who want to know and meet the birth mother before beginning paperwork, and families who plan on going through a lengthy adoption period. The family and woman who plans to give her baby up for adoption are both entitled to receive legal counsel throughout this process, though the adoptive parents are responsible for paying for any associated fees.
Relative or Kinship Adoption
The term kinship refers to caregivers who live within a child’s extended family or biological family. Kin may include biological parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, and non-biologically related caregivers such as mentors and guardians who have a deep bond with the child. A potential family may also include close friends or fictive kin who have a significant relationship with the child. When children cannot live safely in their parents’ home or are unable to be reunited with them, kinship families are often the first option considered by foster care workers.
Adult Adoption
Adult adoption is a widely used form of adoption. It’s typically done for one or more of the following reasons: 1) to formalize a step-parent/step-child relationship, 2) to transfer inheritance rights and/or filiation, and 3) to restore the original legal relationship between adult adoptees and their natural families. Because adult adoption is often done with the intent to transfer inheritance rights and/or filiation, it can be an effective tool in an estate planning process.