A recent report from Iran’s state welfare agency disclosed that one third of Iran’s adoptions in the last ten years were illegal. This situation is not comparable to the situation in the United States, but it makes a stark example of why every adoption requires an adoption lawyer. Sometimes people don’t understand why adoptions require an adoption lawyer in every case. What about a stepparent adoption? What about a grandparent adopting a grandchild? What about a private agreement between friends? These situations are sometimes seen as simple, friendly arrangements that don’t really need a lawyer. Sometimes people wonder why this kind of adoption can’t be a simple DIY process.
Lessons from Iran’s report
In Iran, the cases of illegal adoption included sales to unsuspecting foreign people who wanted to grow their families through adoption. They believed that they were providing homes for orphans.
There were also cases of babies and children being sold to people looking for household servants…or worse. Without the oversight of the legal process of adoption, these children were helpless to avoid such dismal fates.
It couldn’t happen here?
Unfortunately, we know that it can happen here, because it actually has happened here. Now, it is rare. We are shocked when we see occasional news reports about parents selling their babies, and many of us think about casual, informal adoptions as nothing very serious.
But when we look at the history of adoption in the United States, we see that adoptions before the beginning of modern adoption law often led to the same kinds of problems associated with modern illegal adoptions in Iran.
Modern adoption law is designed to protect the rights of everyone involved: birth parents, adoptive parents, and children. A qualified adoption lawyer can make sure that the protection of the law is extended to all the people affected by the adoption. Contact Heimer Law and let us help you go through your adoption journey with confidence.
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