Adoption Law Dictionary

Dictionary of Adoption Legal Terms

More than 300 key terms related to adoption definitions and related family legal terms, defined clearly and concisely. An indispensable reference for family law practitioners, other attorneys and lawyers, law students and general readers. An aid to understanding adoption practices.

The Dictionary

ABANDONMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Desertion of a child by a parent or adult primary caregiver with no provisions for continued childcare nor with any apparent intention to return to resume caregiving.
ABUSE AND NEGLECT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Physical, sexual and/or emotional maltreatment. Child abuse and neglect is defined as any recent act or failure to act resulting in imminent risk of serious harm, death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation of a child (a person under the age of 18, unless the child protection law of the state in which the child resides specifies a younger age for cases not involving sexual abuse) by a parent or caretaker (including any employee of a residential facility or any staff person…(more)
ACCESS VETO SYSTEMS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Type of reunion registry system. The veto is a document filed by one party to the adoption which registers that person’s refusal to be contacted or denial of release of identifying information. In an access veto or non-disclosure request system, an adopted adult may receive identifying information about another party if no veto is on file. Some states may have provisions for a contact veto, permitting a party seeking information access to identifying information, including an original birth certificate, but prohibiting contact between the parties.
ACTIVE REGISTRIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Reunion registries which do not require that both parties register their consent. Once one party is registered, a designated individual (often an agency or court representative) is assigned to contact those persons being sought and determine their wishes for the release of information.
ADD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Acronym for attention deficit disorder.
ADHD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Acronym for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
ADJUDICATORY HEARINGS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Held by the juvenile and family court to determine whether a child has been maltreated or whether another legal basis exists for the state to intervene to protect the child.
ADOPTEE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Any person who has been adopted.
ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal process where parental rights are transferred from birth parents to adoptive parents.
ADOPTION “TRIANGLE” (OR ADOPTION “TRIAD”) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An expression used to describe the three-sided inter-relationships among adopted children, their birth parents, and their adoptive parents.
ADOPTION AGENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Organization placing children in homes, under the jurisdiction of state or licensing laws.
ADOPTION AGREEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The agreement in which the adoptive parent(s) and birth parent(s) put into writing their understanding of the terms of an adoption — including the degree of communication and contact they will have with each other and with the adopted child.
ADOPTION AND SAFE FAMILIES ACT (ASFA) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Signed into law November 1997 and designed to improve the safety of children, to promote adoption and other permanent homes for children who need them and to support families. The law requires Child Protective Services (CPS) to provide more timely and focused assessment and intervention services to the children and families that are served within the CPS system.
ADOPTION ASSISTANCE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Monthly or one-time only subsidy payments to help adoptive parents raise children with special needs. These payments were initially made possible by the enactment of the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-272) which provided federal funding for children eligible under title IV-E of the Social Security Act; States also fund monthly payments for children with special needs who are not eligible for federally funded subsidy payments. “Adoption assistance” can also refer to any help given to adoptive parents.
ADOPTION ATTORNEY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Lawyers who arrange adoptive placements and specialize in adoption.
ADOPTION BENEFITS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Compensation to workers through employer-sponsored programs. Some examples of such benefits are financial assistance or monetary reimbursement for the expenses of adopting a child, or provision of “parental” or “family” leave.
ADOPTION CONSULTANT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Anyone who helps with the placement of a child, but specifically someone who makes it his or her private business to facilitate adoptions.
ADOPTION DISRUPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The interruption of an adoption prior to finalization � sometimes called a “failed adoption” or a “failed placement.”
ADOPTION DISSOLUTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The interruption or “failure” of an adoption after finalization that requires court action.
ADOPTION EXCHANGE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An organization which recruits adoptive families for children with special needs using print, radio, television and Internet recruitment, as well as matching parties (which bring together prospective adoptive parents, waiting children and their social workers in a child-focused setting). Adoption exchanges can be local, state, regional, national or international in scope.
ADOPTION FACILITATOR (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Unlicensed organizations or individuals offering adoption services, which is illegal in 20 states.
ADOPTION INSURANCE (ADOPTION CANCELLATION INSURANCE) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Insurance which protects against financial loss which can be incurred after a birth mother changes her mind and decides not to place her child for adoption.
ADOPTION PETITION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The legal document through which prospective parents request the court’s permission to adopt a specific child.
ADOPTION PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The point at which a child begins to live with prospective adoptive parents; the period before the adoption is finalized.
ADOPTION PLAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A plan created between a birth mother and a social worker specifying all aspects and desires with regards to an adoption.
ADOPTION PROFESSIONAL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Employee of a licensed adoption agency or a trained and educated adoption authority who has training and experiences in adoption services and authorized by the agency to provide adoption services.
ADOPTION REVERSAL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Reclaiming of a child (originally voluntarily placed with adoptive parents) by birth parent(s) who have had a subsequent change of heart. State laws vary in defining time limits and circumstances under which a child may be reclaimed.
ADOPTION SERVICE PROVIDER (ASP) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A licensed agency or individual who is State certified to assist birth parents and adoptive parents with the placement of a child in an Independent Adoption.
ADOPTION SUBSIDIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Federal or state adoption benefits (also known as adoption assistance) designed to help offset the short- and long-term costs associated with adopting children who need special services. To be eligible for the Federal IV-E subsidy program, children must meet each of the following characteristics: a court has ordered that the child cannot or should not be returned to the birth family; the child has special needs, as determined by the state’s definition of special needs; a “reasonable effort” has…(more)
ADOPTION TAX CREDITS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Non-refundable credit which reduces taxes owed by adoptive parents who claim adoption expense reimbursement under P.L. 104-188; may be claimed on federal taxes (and in some states with similar legislation, on state taxes).
ADOPTION TAX EXCLUSIONS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
IRS provisions in the federal tax code which allow adoptive parents to exclude cash or other adoption benefits for qualifying adoption expenses received from a private-sector employer when computing the family’s adjusted gross income for tax purposes.
ADOPTION TRIAD/TRIANGLE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The three parties involved in an adoption: adoptee, adoptive parents and birth parents.
ADOPTION.ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS (AAP) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Federally funded state administered subsidy program for special needs children who might otherwise remain in longterm foster care.
ADOPTIVE PARENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Person(s) who legally assume parental rights/responsibilities for adopted child.
ADULT ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The adoption of a person over the age of majority (as defined in state law).
AGENCY ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoptive placements made by licensed organizations that screen prospective adoptive parents and supervise the placement of children in adoptive homes until the adoption is finalized.
AGENCY PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Completion of an adoption.
ALCOHOL-RELATED BIRTH DEFECTS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Physical or cognitive deficits in a child which result from maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy � includes but is not limited to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE).
ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOR (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Actions deviating sharply from the social norm. Children with such behaviors commonly skip school, get into fights, run away from home, persistently lie, use drugs or alcohol, steal, vandalize property and violate school and home rules.
APOSTILLE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A simplified certification of public (including notarized) documents used in countries that participate in a Hague Convention. This simplified form contains numbered fields (which allow the data to be understood by all participating countries regardless of the official language of the issuing country). The completed apostille form certifies the authenticity of the document’s signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, and identifies the seal/stamp which the document…(more)
APPROVED ADOPTION PRACTITIONER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Practitioner
ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Impregnation of a woman by one of many possible artificial reproductive technologies (ARTs).
ASFA (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Acronym for Adoption and Safe Families Act.
ASSISTANCE, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Subsidy.
ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES (ART) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Medical technologies that assist in the impregnation of a female. Technologies include oocyte (or egg) donation, embryo donation, in vitro fertilization, artificial insemination and sperm donation. Different medical procedures are used within each of these procedures.
AT-RISK PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The placement of a child into the prospective adoptive family before the birth parents’ rights have been legally extinguished.
ATTACHMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The ability of a child to form significant and stable emotional connections with other people, beginning in early infancy with one or more primary caretakers. Failure to establish such connections before the age of five may result in difficulties with social relationships as severe as reactive attachment disorder.
ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER (ADD) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A lifelong developmental disability (with onset in infancy, childhood or adolescence) that affects a child’s ability to concentrate and control impulses. A child who has ADD is not hyperactive, but often has problems sustaining attention in task or play activities, difficulty in persisting with tasks to completion, and concentrating for longer periods of time.
ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER (ADHD) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A lifelong developmental disability (with onset in infancy, childhood or adolescence) that involves problems with attention span, impulse control, and activity level at home, at school or at work. Typical behaviors include: fidgeting with hands or squirming in seat; difficulty remaining seated when required; distractibility; difficulty waiting for turns in groups; difficulty staying on task with chores or play activities; difficulty playing quietly; excessive talking; inattention; restlessness; and engaging in physically dangerous activities without considering consequences.
AUTHORITY, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Hague Convention
AUTISTIC DISORDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A pervasive developmental disturbance with onset before age three, characterized by markedly abnormal or impaired development in social interaction and communication and a markedly restricted array of activity and interests. Manifestations of the disorder vary greatly depending on the developmental level and age of the individual. Autistic children can be withdrawn and show little interest in others or in typical childhood activities and instead exhibit repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests and activities.
BENEFIT, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
(1) A government benefit to help people to adopt children or to raise them. The benefit may take the form of paid leave from work, payment (see Subsidy), medical help and post-adoption services (2) A company benefit, such as a payment made to an employee through an employer-sponsored program to help pay for adoption expenses. The company may also grant paid or unpaid leave
BI-RACIAL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Refers to a child that has heritage of two races, usually African-American and another race.
BIOLOGICAL CHILD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The child of parents by birth.
BIPOLAR DISORDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A category of mental illnesses in which mood and affect are disturbed � characterized by irregular cycles of mania and/or depression. During manic periods, the individual may be in a very elevated mood and exhibit symptoms of hyperactivity, wakefulness and distractibility or irritability. In very severe episodes, psychotic symptoms may also be present. Individuals experiencing depressive periods can exhibit sustained symptoms of depressed mood, diminished pleasure or interest in most activities, fatigue, sleep disturbance (either insomnia or hypersomnia), weight loss or weight gain and slowed thinking.
BIRTH CERTIFICATE (AMENDED) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal document after the adoption is finalized, replacing the original birth certificate, as indicated by the court in the adoption decree, with the adoptive parents’ names replacing the birth parents’ names.
BIRTH CERTIFICATE (ORIGINAL) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal document issued at time of birth with the child’s biological history including the identity of one or both biological parents.
BIRTH FAMILY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The birth family is composed of those sharing a child’s genetic heritage. See also birth mother
BIRTH FATHER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Biological father of a child that is adopted or planning to be adopted.
BIRTH MOTHER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Biological mother of a child that is adopted or planning to be adopted.
BIRTH MOTHER / FATHER / PARENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The birth (or biological) mother is the woman giving birth to a child who is subsequently placed for adoption Usage (1): Avoid the terms “real” or “natural” mother; these imply the existence of an “unreal” or “unnatural” mother. Similarly, prefer “birth father” and “birth parents”, not “natural father” or “natural parents”. However, some advocates promote the terms “natural mother” (Canadian Council of Natural Mothers) or “first mother” Usage (2): Writers need to be careful when referring…(more)
BIRTH PARENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child’s biological parent.
BLACK MARKET (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption performed outside the law, often referred to as the illegal buying and selling of children.
BOARDER BABIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Infants abandoned in hospitals because of the parents’ inability to care for them. These babies are usually born HIV-positive or drug addicted.
BONDING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The process of developing lasting emotional ties with one’s immediate caregivers; seen as the first and primary developmental task of a human being and central to the person’s ability to relate to others throughout life.
CASA (COURT-APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Court-appointed special advocates (usually volunteers) who serve to ensure that the needs and interests of a child in child protection judicial proceedings are fully protected.
CASE CLOSURE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The process of ending the relationship between the CPS worker and the family that often involves a mutual assessment of progress. Optimally, cases are closed when families have achieved their goals and the risk of maltreatment has been reduced or eliminated.
CASE PLAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The casework document that outlines the outcomes, goals and tasks necessary to be achieved in order to reduce the risk of maltreatment.
CASE PLANNING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the CPS case process where the CPS caseworker develops a case plan with the family members.
CASEWORKER COMPETENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Demonstrated professional behaviors based on the knowledge, skills, personal qualities and values a person holds.
CENTRAL AUDITORY PROCESSING DISORDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A condition in which an individual has difficulty comprehending and integrating information that is heard, although hearing is normal. Central auditory processing disorder occurs when the ear and the brain do not coordinate fully. The causes of this disorder are varied and can include head trauma, lead poisoning, possibly chronic ear infections and other unknown reasons. Because there are many different possibilities or even combinations of causes each child must be individually assessed.
CENTRAL REGISTRY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A centralized database containing information on all substantiated/founded reports of child maltreatment in a selected area (typically a State).
CEREBRAL PALSY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A non-hereditary condition which results from brain damage before, during or after birth. Children with cerebral palsy lack muscle control in one or more parts of their bodies or may experience speech and language difficulties, depending on the area of the brain damaged. Individuals with cerebral palsy can possess very normal mental functions.
CERTIFICATE / DECREE / ORDER (ADOPTION) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
At the end of the finalization process, the court issues a document stating the adoptee is the legal child of the adoptive parents.
CERTIFICATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The approval process (detailed in State laws or regulations) that takes place to ensure, insofar as possible, that adoptive or foster parents are suitable, dependable and responsible. “Certification” of documents involves a seal or apostille required by law or regulation affixed to a public document (such as a birth or marriage certificate or court record) to attest to its authenticity or to a general document to attest that the document has been notarized by an authorized official.
CERTIFIED COPY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A copy of an official document, like a birth certificate, marriage certificate, or divorce decree, that has been certified by an official to be authentic and bears an original seal or embossed design.
CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT ACT (CAPTA) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The law (P.L. 93-247) that provides a foundation for a national definition of child abuse and neglect. Reauthorized in October 1996 (P.L. 104-235), it was up for reauthorization at the time of publication. CAPTA defines child abuse and neglect as “at a minimum, any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm.”
CHILD PROFILE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Document written by a child’s caseworker to provide a prospective adoptive family with comprehensive information about the child, including family history; medical, psychological and educational assessments; history of previous placements; and daily routines.
CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES (CPS) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The designated social services agency (in most states) to receive reports, investigate and provide intervention and treatment services to children and families in which child maltreatment has occurred. Frequently, this agency is located within larger public social service agencies, such as Departments of Social Services.
CHILDREN’S AID SOCIETY (CAS) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In Ontario, a public child welfare agency funded by government and responsible for protecting Ontario children, finding foster homes, and finding permanent families for children in its care who are available for adoption. There are 52 in Ontario, licensed and funded by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services. Also called Family and Children’s Services (FACS)
CIRCLE / CONSTELLATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Triad
CLOSED ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption in which confidentiality of both adoptive parents and birth parents are protected under the law, the courts seal all records.
CO-PARENTING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A long-term (formal or informal) agreement to support the needs of children with developmental disabilities by which extra caregivers support parents by providing ongoing respite parenting when needed.
CONCURRENT PLANNING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A process used in foster care case management by which child welfare staff work toward family reunification and, at the same time, develop an alternative permanency plan for the child (such as permanent placement with a relative or adoption) should family reunification efforts fail. Concurrent planning is intended to reduce the time a child spends in foster care before a child is placed with a permanent family.
CONDUCT DISORDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A condition characterized by a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior which violates the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate societal norms or rules. A child or teen with conduct disorder may: display aggressive conduct (bully or threaten others, initiate fights, use weapons that could cause serious harm, force someone into sexual activity, be physically aggressive or cruel to people or animals); engage in non-aggressive behaviors that result in property loss or damage; engage…(more)
CONFIDENTIAL ADOPTION OR CLOSED ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption in which the birth parent(s) and the adoptive parent(s) do not meet, do not exchange identifying information, and do not maintain contact with each other.
CONFIDENTIAL INTERMEDIARY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
State employee or trained volunteer sanctioned by the courts, who is given access to sealed adoption files for the purpose of conducting a search. A confidential intermediary may be hired by the inquiring party to conduct searches for an adopted adult or birth parent or other birth relatives (depending on state laws), make contact with each party and obtain each person’s consent or denial for the release of information. Depending on the particular laws of the state, contact may be attempted once, after a specific time period or the file may be closed permanently if the party being sought cannot be found.
CONFIDENTIALITY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The legally required process of keeping identifying or other significant information secret; the principle of ethical practice which requires social workers and other professional not to disclose information about a client without the client’s consent.
CONSENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal process through which a birth parent voluntarily agrees to make an adoption plan for their child with a specific family through an Independent Adoption.
CONSENT FORM (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The legal document signed by the biological mother and father allowing their child to be placed for adoption. If birth parent is unavailable, the courts can validate the consents without the birth parents’ signature. (A consent is also referred to as a surrender or relinquishment).
CONSENT TO ADOPT OR CONSENT TO ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal permission for the adoption to proceed.
COOPERATIVE ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption in which adopted child has access to both adoptive parents and birth parents who participate in decisions affecting their life.
CPS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Acronym for Child Protective Services.
CULTURAL COMPETENCE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A set of attitudes, behaviors and policies that integrates knowledge about groups of people into practices and standards to enhance the quality of services to all cultural groups being served.
CUSTODY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Authority by a person or guardian embodying all of the rights and responsibilities.
CUSTOM ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Form of adoption specific to aboriginal peoples, taking place within the aboriginal community and recognizing traditional customs. Also, “customary adoption”. Commentary: In Alberta (e.g. Yellowhead Tribal Services), bands place native children with families on the reserve, using custom adoption ceremonies which recognize traditional practices, while also conforming with provincial law. In the Canadian north, strong traditions of custom adoption have helped Inuit keep their children in their communities….(more)
CUSTOM CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Form of kinship care specific to aboriginal communities. In custom (or customary) care, native children are cared for by relatives, members of their tribe or clan, stepparents, godparents or any adult with a kinship bond. The child maintains a connection with extended family and community, when not able to live at home
DE FACTO (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A term meaning “in actual fact,? “in deed,” or “actually,? regardless of legal or normative standards. In a legal context, the phrase refers to an action or a state of affairs which must be accepted for all practical purposes, but which has no legal basis. A “de facto family” is a “psychological family” in which members have ties to each other even though they are relatives by birth or marriage and do not have a legal document recognizing their relationship.
DE FACTO ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A legal agreement to adopt a child according to the laws of a particular state which will result in a legal adoption process once the adoption petition is filed with the appropriate court; an equitable adoption.
DECREE OF ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A legal order that finalizes an adoption.
DEPENDENT CHILD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child who is in the custody of the county or state child welfare system.
DESIGNATED ADOPTION OR IDENTIFIED ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption in which the birth parent(s) choose(s) the adoptive parent(s) for the child.
DESIGNATED/LDENTIFIED ADOPTIONS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Process in which birthparents choose the individual or couple who will adopt their child and designates the placement of the child while still having the benefits of an agency assisted adoption.
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Any handicapping condition related to delays in maturation of or difficulties with skills or intellect.
DIFFERENTIAL RESPONSE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An area of CPS reform that offers greater flexibility in responding to allegations of abuse and neglect. Also referred to as “dual track” or “multi-track” response, it permits CPS agencies to respond differentially to children’s needs for safety, the degree of risk present, and the family’s needs for services and support. See “Dual Track.”
DISCLOSURE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The release or transmittal of previously hidden or unknown information.
DISPOSITIONAL HEARINGS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Held by the juvenile and family court to determine the disposition of children after cases have been adjudicated, such as whether placement of the child in out-of-home care is necessary and what services the children and family will need to reduce the risk of maltreatment and to address the effects of maltreatment.
DISRUPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption or potential adoption that fails before finalization.
DISSOLUTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The term dissolution is used to describe an adoption that fails after finalization, resulting in the child’s legal custody reverting back to the agency or court that made the original placement and the child returning to foster care and/or to other adoptive parent(s).
DOMESTIC ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The adoption of a child born in the United States.
DOSSIER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The collection of paperwork used in an international adoption that has been properly authenticated and translated.
DOWN SYNDROME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A genetic disorder (caused by the presence of an extra chromosome), which results in physical and mental abnormalities. Physical characteristics include a flattened face, widely spaced and slanted eyes, smaller head size and lax joints. Mental retardation is also typical, though there are wide variations in mental ability, behavior, and developmental progress. Possible related health problems include poor resistance to infection, hearing loss, gastrointestinal problems and heart defects.
DUAL TRACK (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
term reflecting new CPS response systems that typically combine a non-adversarial service-based assessment track for cases where children are not at immediate risk with a traditional CPS investigative track for cases where children are unsafe or at greater risk for maltreatment. See “differential response.”
EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Severe, pervasive or chronic emotional/affective condition which prevents a child from performing everyday tasks. This condition is characterized by an inability to build or maintain relationships, inappropriate behaviors or feelings under normal circumstances, a pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression or a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears related to personal or school problems. Children may require special classrooms and teachers trained to help children with these special needs. School systems may have varying “levels” and processes for educational planning.
EMPLOYER ASSISTANCE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption benefits provided to employees by employers which may include direct cash assistance for adoption expenses, reimbursement of approved adoption expenses, paid or unpaid leave (beyond federal leave requirements established through the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993) and resource and referral services. For a list of employers who provide benefits, call the National Adoption Center at (800)-TO-ADOPT.
EQUITABLE ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The legal process used in some states to establish inheritance rights of a child, when the prospective adoptive parent had entered into an oral contract to adopt the child and the child was placed with the parent but the adoption was not finalized before the parent died.
EVALUATION OF FAMILY PROGRESS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the CPS case process where the CPS caseworker measures changes in family behaviors and conditions (risk factors), monitors risk elimination or reduction, assesses strengths and determines case closure.
EXCHANGE, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
(1) An event bringing together public adoption agencies and people seeking to adopt, e.g. Ontario’s twice-yearly Adoption Resource Exchange. Prospective parents can meet adoption workers and learn about children waiting to be adopted (2) In the U.S., an organization recruiting families to adopt children. Exchanges are usually state or regional, and supply information (by web, print, radio and TV) to help match people wishing to adopt with children waiting for adoption within a state or region
EXTENDED FAMILY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child’s relatives (other than parents) such as aunts, uncles, grandparents and sometimes close friends.
FACILITATOR (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A person or organization that arranges domestic and/or international adoptions.
FAILED ADOPTION / FAILED PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Disruption and Dissolution
FAMILY ASSESSMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the child protection process when the CPS caseworker, community treatment provider and the family reach a mutual understanding regarding the behaviors and conditions that must change to reduce or eliminate the risk of maltreatment, the most critical treatment needs that must be addressed and the strengths on which to build.
FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A family meeting model used by CPS agencies to optimize family strengths in the planning process. This model brings the family, extended family and others important in the family’s life (e.g., friends, clergy, neighbors) together to make decisions regarding how best to ensure safety of the family members.
FAMILY PRESERVATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A program of supportive social services designed to keep families together by providing services to children and families in their home. It is based on the premise that birth families are the preferred means of providing family life for children.
FAMILY UNITY MODEL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A family meeting model used by CPS agencies to optimize family strengths in the planning process. This model is similar to the family group conferencing model.
FETAL ALCOHOL EFFECT (FAE) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A disorder associated with cognitive and behavioral difficulties in children whose birth mothers drank alcohol while pregnant. Symptoms are similar to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) but less severe or comprehensive.
FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME (FAS) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Birth defects and serious life-long mental and emotional impairments that may result from heavy maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Symptoms of mental and emotional deficits may include significant learning and behavioral disorders (including attention deficits and hyperactivity), diminished cause-and-effect thinking, poor social judgment and impulsive behaviors.
FICTIVE KIN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
People not related by birth or marriage who have an emotionally significant relationship with an individual.
FINAL ADOPTION DECREE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal document issued by the court that completes the adoption.
FINALIZATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Court action that grants permanent legal custody of a child to the adoptive parents.
FINANCIAL AID (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Benefit and Subsidy.
FOLLOW-UP REPORT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Report.
FOSTER ADOPTION PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Foster placement of a child, with adoption being the final goal, once all legal requirements have been met. The couple must be certified as suitable to adopt with their home licensed as a foster home. (There is no assurance that placement will evolve into adoption
FOSTER CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Substitute parental care for a short, extended or permanent period of time for a child whose biological parents cannot provide proper care.
FOSTER CHILD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Child who is placed with a state-licensed family or in a group care facility because their biological parents cannot provide proper care.
FOSTER PARENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
State-licensed adult who is paid or volunteers to take care of children, but is not related by blood, marriage or adoption.
FOSTER-ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child placement in which birth parents’ rights have not yet been severed by the court or in which birth parents are appealing the court’s decision but foster parents agree to adopt the child if/when parental rights are terminated. Social workers place the child with specially trained foster-adopt parents who will work with the child during family reunification efforts but who will adopt the child if the child becomes available for adoption. The main reason for making such a placement, also called legal-risk adoption, is to spare the child another move.
FOSTER-ADOPTION / FOST-ADOPT / FOSTERING WITH A VIEW TO ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A foster placement intended to result in adoption. The child welfare agency places a child in a foster home, expecting that the foster parents will adopt the child if and when she becomes legally free for adoption (when parental rights are terminated). Commentary: One advantage of such a placement is that it spares the child a move to another foster family or to an adoptive family
FULL DISCLOSURE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
CPS information to the family regarding the steps in the intervention process, the requirements of CPS, the expectations of the family, the consequences if the family does not fulfill the expectations and the rights of the parents to ensure that the family completely understands the process.
GENEALOGY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A family’s genetic “line,? family tree or a record of such ancestry.
GRIEF (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A feeling of emotional deprivation or loss. Grief may be experienced by each member of the adoption triad at some point.
GROUP HOME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A homelike setting in which a number of unrelated children live for varying time periods. Group homes may have one set of house parents or may have a rotating staff and some therapeutic or treatment group homes have specially trained staff to assist children with emotional and behavioral difficulties.
GUARDIAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Person who fulfills some of the responsibilities of the legal parent role, although the courts or birth parents may continue to hold some jurisdiction of the child. Guardians do not have the same reciprocal rights of inheritance as birth or adoptive parents. Guardianship is subject to ongoing supervision by the court and ends at the child’s majority or by order of the court.
GUARDIAN AD LITEM (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A lawyer or lay person who represents a child in juvenile or family court. Usually this person considers the “best interest” of the child and may perform a variety of roles, including those of independent investigator, advocate, advisor and guardian for the child. A lay person who serves in this role is sometimes known as a court-appointed special advocate or CASA. The status of guardian ad litem exists only within the confines of the particular court case in which the appointment occurs.
GUARDIANSHIP (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A guardian is a person who is legally responsible for a child. In kinship care, guardianship may serve as an alternative to adoption, when the child’s relative assumes a parental role but prefers not to adopt. Guardianship is subject to ongoing supervision by the court and ends by court order or when the child reaches the age of majority.
HAGUE CONVENTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, inaugurated in 1993, is an international treaty setting the framework for the adoption of children between countries. The aim is to protect the best interests of adopted children and prevent abuses such as trafficking in children. The Convention standardizes procedures between the adoption authority in the child’s country of origin and the corresponding authority in the receiving country. Each country which has ratified the Convention designates a central…(more)
HAGUE CONVENTION ON INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A multinational agreement designed to promote the uniformity and efficiency of international adoptions.
HARD-TO-PLACE CHILDREN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Some children are harder to place for adoption, for reasons such as special needs, age, race and being in a sibling group.
HOME STUDY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A study of the home of prospective adoptive parents, normally completed prior to placement of a child in their home. It validates suitability to adopt for the courts. (A negative home study evaluation, while rare, usually means the adoption will not be authorized.)
HOME VISITATION PROGRAMS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Prevention programs that offer a variety of family focused services to pregnant mothers and families with new babies. Activities frequently encompass structured visits to the family’s home and may address positive parenting practices, nonviolent discipline techniques, child development, maternal and child health, available services and advocacy.
I-600 AND I-600A VISA PETITION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An official request to the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to classify an orphan as an immediate relative � providing expedited processing and issuance of a visa to allow the child to enter the United States after having been adopted abroad or in order to be adopted in the United States.
ICPC (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Interstate Compact for Placement of Children which monitors the movementof foster and adoptive children from state to state.
IDENTIFYING INFORMATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Information on birthparents which discloses their identities.
IMMUNITY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Established in all child abuse laws to protect reporters from civil lawsuits and criminal prosecution resulting from filing a report of child abuse and neglect.
INDEPENDENT ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption arranged privately by a non-licensed third party (i.e., doctor or lawyer) or between the birth family and adoptive parents.
INDEPENDENT LIVING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A type of placement that provides life-skills training to youth to assist them to acquire the skills they will need to live independently as adults. The program is designed for children who are “aging out” of foster care and for whom there is no other permanency plan.
INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT (ICWA) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Federal Act designed to protect the interest of Native American children and tribes.
INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATIONAL PLAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
IEP, a plan for educational support services and outcomes developed for students enrolled in special education programs.
INFERTILITY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The inability to conceive or carry a pregnancy to term.
INITIAL ASSESSMENT OR INVESTIGATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the CPS case process where the CPS caseworker determines the validity of the child maltreatment report, assesses the risk of maltreatment, determines if the child is safe, develops a safety plan if needed to assure the child’s protection and determines services needed.
INS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
INS has changed its name to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, now a bureau under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
INSTITUTIONALIZATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The placement of children in hospitals, institutions or orphanages. Placement in institutions during early critical developmental periods and for lengthy periods is often associated with developmental delays due to environmental deprivation, poor staff-child ratios or lack of early stimulation.
INTAKE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the CPS case process where the CPS caseworker screens and accepts reports of child maltreatment.
INTER-COUNTRY OR INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The adoption of a child from a country outside of the United States.
INTERCOUNTRY OR INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The adoption of a child who is a citizen of one country by adoptive parents who are citizens of a different country.
INTERNATIONAL (INTERCOUNTRY) ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption of a child living in a different country from the adoptive parent(s)
INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption of a child born outside of the United States.
INTERSTATE COMPACT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A voluntary agreement between two or more states designed to address common problems of the states concerned.
INTERSTATE COMPACT ON ADOPTION AND MEDICAL ASSISTANCE (ICAMA) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An agreement between member states that governs the interstate delivery of and payment for medical services and adoption assistance payments/subsidies for adopted children with special needs. The agreements are established by the laws of the states which are parties to the compact.
INTERSTATE COMPACT ON THE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN (ICPC) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An agreement regulating the placement of children across state lines. All 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands have independently adopted the ICPC as statutory law in their respective jurisdictions.
INTERVIEW PROTOCOL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A structured format to ensure that all family members are seen in a planned strategy, that community providers collaborate and that information gathering is thorough.
JUVENILE AND FAMILY COURTS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Established in most states to resolve conflict and to otherwise intervene in the lives of families in a manner that promotes the best interest of children. These courts specialize in areas such as child maltreatment, domestic violence, juvenile delinquency, divorce, child custody and child support.
KINSHIP ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption of a child by a grandparent, aunt, uncle, other member of the extended family, godparent or someone considered kin. In kinship adoption, as opposed to kinship care, the child is adopted legally. See also custom adoption and relative adoption
KINSHIP CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The full-time nurturing of a child by someone related to the child by family ties or by prior relationship connection (fictive kin).
LEARNING DISABILITIES (LD) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
One or more impairments in reading, mathematics or written expression skills which interfere with academic performance in school or in activities of daily living requiring those skills. Performance on standardized tests below that expected for age, schooling and level of intelligence are used as preliminary diagnostic tools to identify areas where children are experiencing problems. Children with learning disabilities may be of average or above average intelligence, but have difficulty learning,…(more)
LEAVE, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Government benefit by which workers get paid leave from work when adopting. Under Canada’s Employment Insurance program, women who give birth are due 15 weeks of maternity leave and 35 weeks of parental leave. Adoptive parents get only 35 weeks of parental leave
LEGAL CUSTODY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Restraint of or responsibility for a person according to law, such as a guardian’s authority (conferred by the court) over the person or property (or both) of his ward.
LEGAL GUARDIAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Any person who can make legal decisions for a minor child.
LEGAL RISK ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption proceeding that is started even though the prospective adoptive family cannot be guaranteed that the child is eligible for adoption.
LEGAL RISK PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Placement of a child in a prospective adoptive family when a child is not yet legally free for adoption. Before a child can be legally adopted by another family, parental rights of his or her birth parents must be terminated. In a “legal risk” adoptive placement either this termination of parental rights has not yet occurred, or it is being contested. In some cases, termination of parental rights is delayed until a specific adoptive family has been identified.
LEGALLY FREE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child whose birth parents’ rights have been legally terminated so that the child is “free” to be adopted by another family.
LIAISON (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The designation of a person within an organization who has responsibility for facilitating communication, collaboration and coordination between agencies involved in the child protection system.
LICENSED ADOPTION AGENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An agency to whom the provincial adoption ministry has granted a licence to place children for adoption in the province, and to manage the adoption process during the probation period. Commentary: The process of licensing is governed by provincial regulations. Ontario is the only province allowing individuals to be licensed, and uses the term “licensee” to mean either a licensed person or a licensed agency. See also Practitioner
LIFE BOOK (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A pictorial and written representation of the child’s life designed to help the child make sense of his unique background and history. The life book includes birthparents, other relatives, birthplace and date, etc. and can be put together by social workers, foster parents or adoptive parents working with the child.
LONG-TERM FOSTER CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The intentional and planned placement of a child in foster care for an extended period of time. After the goal of adoption has been explored and not selected, and relative options are not feasible, a goal of planned long-term foster care may be seen as a viable goal. Increasingly some States child welfare systems no longer view long-term foster care as a placement alternative.
LOSS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A feeling of emotional deprivation that is experienced at some point in time. For a birth parent the initial loss will usually be felt at or subsequent to the placement of the child. Adoptive parents who are infertile feel a loss in their inability to bear a child. An adopted child may feel a sense of loss at various points in time; the first time the child realizes he is adopted may invoke a strong sense of loss for his birth family.
MAINSTREAMED (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In education, a term that typically refers to the planned and sustained placement of a child with special educational needs into a regular education classroom for part or all of the school day.
MALTREATMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Physical abuse, child neglect, sexual abuse and emotional abuse. Federal CAPTA legislation (P.L. 104-235) provides definitions that identify a minimum set of acts or behaviors that characterize maltreatment. Each state is responsible for providing its own definitions of child abuse and neglect within the state’s civil and criminal context.
MANDATED REPORTER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Individuals required by state statutes to report suspected child abuse and neglect to the proper authorities (usually CPS or law enforcement agencies). Mandated reporters typically include professionals, such as educators and other school personnel, health care and mental health professionals, social workers, childcare providers and law enforcement officers. Some states identify all citizens as mandated reporters.
MATCHING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The process of finding prospective families specifically suited to meet the needs of a waiting child, not to be confused with “placement.?
MATERNITY HOME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Residences for pregnant women. The number of homes has decreased over the past three decades, and existing homes often have a waiting list of women. The women who live in a maternity home may pay a small fee or no fee to live in the home and they often apply for public assistance and Medicaid payments.
MATERNITY LEAVE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Leave
MENTAL RETARDATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Impaired or incomplete mental development characterized by an IQ of 70 or below and characterized by significant functional limitations in at least two of the following skills: communication, self-care, home living, social/interpersonal skills, use of community resources, self-direction, functional academic skills, work, leisure, health and safety. Onset usually occurs before age 18. More than 200 specific causes of mental retardation have been identified. Degrees of severity reflect the level of…(more)
MEPA (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Acronym for Multi-Ethnic Placement Act of 1994.
MINORITY CHILDREN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Children of partial or full non-Caucasian parentage, or mixed Caucasian and non-Caucasian heritage.
MULTI-ETHNIC PLACEMENT ACT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A federal law enacted in 1994 and implemented through state policy. The Multi-Ethnic Placement Act of 1994, as amended, P.L. 103-382 [42 USC 622] prohibits the delay or denial of any adoption or placement in foster care due to the race, color or national origin of the child or of the foster or adoptive parents and requires states to provide for diligent recruitment of potential foster and adoptive families who reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of children for whom homes are needed. The 1996…(more)
MULTI-RACIAL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Refers to a child that has heritage of two or more races.
MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Established between agencies and professionals within the child protection system to discuss cases of child abuse and neglect and to aid in decisions at various stages of the CPS case process. These terms may also be designated by different names, including child protection teams, interdisciplinary teams or case consultation teams.
NEGLECT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The failure to provide for the child’s basic needs. Neglect can be physical, educational or emotional. Physical neglect can include not providing adequate food or clothing, appropriate medical care, supervision or proper weather protection (heat or coats). Educational neglect includes failure to provide appropriate schooling, special educational needs or allowing excessive truancies. Psychological neglect includes the lack of any emotional support and love, chronic inattention to the child, exposure to spouse abuse or drug and alcohol abuse.
NON-IDENTIFYING INFORMATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The medical and social history along with other information exchanged between birth parents and adoptive parents without using names, addresses or other identifying information of both parties.
NON-RECURRING ADOPTION COSTS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
One time adoption expenses, which may be at least partially reimbursed by states up to a maximum amount to families adopting children with special needs. Allowable expenses for this reimbursement benefit can include the cost of a home study, adoption fees, court costs, attorney fees, physical and psychological examinations, travel to visit with the child prior to the placement and other expenses related to the legal adoption of a child with special needs.
NON-SECTARIAN AGENCIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Any agency that does not have any religious requirements for its clients.
OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The science of using everyday activities with specific goals, to help people of all ages prevent, lessen or overcome physical disabilities.
OPEN ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Usually, an adoption where birth parents and adoptive parents meet, names and addresses may be exchanged and communication may continue indefinitely.
OPEN ADOPTION AGREEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Openness
OPEN ADOPTION OR COOPERATIVE ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption in which the birth parents and adoptive parents have contact with each other before and/or after the placement of the adopted child.
OPEN RECORDS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Accessibility to own adoption records by each member of the triad. This includes access to identifying information.
OPENNESS IN ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Birth parents and adoptive parents often agree to have an open adoption, with ongoing contact between their families. Their open adoption agreement may be verbal or written, but it is not legally binding. It spells out how much contact, perhaps specifying the frequency and manner of contact between adoptive and birth families, or between siblings placed separately. The families could exchange letters and photos, either directly or through an agency, or schedule phone calls and visits (1) In…(more)
OPPOSITIONAL DEFIANT DISORDER (ODD) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A recurrent pattern of negative, defiant, disobedient and hostile behavior toward authority figures that persists for at least six months. This disorder is characterized by frequent occurrence of at least four of the following behaviors: frequent loss of temper, tendency to argue with adults, refusal to obey adult rules or requests, deliberate behaviors to annoy others, spiteful and vindictive behavior, being touchy or easily annoyed by others, being angry and resentful, use of obscene language…(more)
ORPHAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Child from another country that has no parents or only one parent that cannot care for them.
ORPHAN (INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION DEFINITION) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
For immigration purposes, a child under the age of 16: ? whose parents have died or disappeared ? who has been abandoned or otherwise separated from both parents ? whose sole surviving parent is impoverished by local standards and incapable of providing that child with proper care and who has, in writing, irrevocably released the child for emigration and adoption. To enter the United States, an orphan must have been adopted abroad by a U.S. citizen or be admitted to the United States for the purpose of adoption by a U.S. citizen.
ORPHANAGE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Institution that houses children who are orphaned, abandoned or whose parents are unable to care for them. Orphanages are rarely used in the United States, although they are more frequently used abroad.
OUT-OF-HOME CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Child care, foster care or residential care provided by persons, organizations and institutions to children who are placed outside their families, usually under the jurisdiction of juvenile or family court.
PARENS PATRIAE DOCTRINE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Originating in feudal England, a doctrine that vests in the state a right of guardianship of minors. This concept has gradually evolved into the principle that the community, in addition to the parent, has a strong interest in the care and nurturing of children. Schools, juvenile courts and social service agencies all derive their authority from the state’s power to ensure the protection and rights of children as a unique class.
PARENT OR CARETAKER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Person responsible for the care of the child.
PARENTAL LEAVE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Leave
PARENTAL RIGHTS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Relinquishment.
PERMANENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Arrangement which assures lasting care and parenting of a child and eliminates the need for further moves. In permanency planning, systematic efforts are made to find a child a safe and nurturing family setting expected to last a lifetime. Some options are: adoption, reunification with the birth family and guardianship
PETITION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Written request to the court for legal custody, guardianship or adoption of a child.
PHOTOLISTING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
List of children available for adoption, usually through public child welfare agencies, including photos and descriptions. It may be printed in a book or newspaper, shown on TV or posted at a web site. Commentary: Photolistings are used to recruit adoptive parents for specific children. Photolistings respect the privacy of the child by not using last names, restricting the detail in the descriptions and arranging contact through an intermediary — the social worker handling the child’s file. Web…(more)
PHYSICAL ABUSE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The inflicting of a non-accidental physical injury upon a child. This may include burning, hitting, punching, shaking, kicking, beating or otherwise harming a child. It may, however, have been the result of over-discipline or physical punishment that is inappropriate to the child’s age.
PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Act of physically placing a child in a foster or prospective adoptive home Usage: “Placement” also covers the state of being placed in a home, e.g. “The social worker supervised the placement.” In adoption, “post-placement” usually refers to the period after placement and before finalization
PLAN, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
(1) The birth parents’ plan to allow their child to be placed for adoption. Usage: “Birthparents make an adoption plan for a child and subsequently place the child for adoption.” Avoid the negative phrases “give up a baby” and “put up for adoption.” (2) The plan or agreement which birth parents and adoptive parents make together regarding contact between their families, e.g. semi-open or open adoption. See Openness
POST-ADOPTION REPORT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Report.
POST-ADOPTION SERVICES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Services provided after adoption finalization. Service may be provided to both birth and adoptive families, and adoptees, by a public agency, private therapist or community organization. Services may consist of providing subsidies, respite care, counselling, day care, medical equipment, support groups and peer support programs such as an adopted teens group
POST-PLACEMENT SERVICES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A variety of services provided after the adoption is finalized, including counseling, social services, and adoptive family events and outings.
POST-PLACEMENT VISITS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Investigation and interviews with an adoptive family once a child has been placed with them.
PRACTITIONER, APPROVED ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In Ontario, a professional, usually a social worker, with experience in adoption or child welfare, whom the provincial ministry responsible for adoption has approved to conduct home studies and supervise placements in prospective adoptive homes.
PRIMARY PREVENTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Activities geared to a sample of the general population to prevent child abuse and neglect from occurring. Also referred to as “universal prevention.”
PRIVATE ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
(1) An adoption arranged by a privately-funded, licensed adoption agency. See also Private agency. Commentary: Most provinces allow private adoption. All private adoption is regulated by the provincial ministry responsible for adoptions. Ministries license individuals and agencies to place children privately, approve the social workers to conduct homestudies and monitor the performance of licensees and social workers. In some provinces, such as British Columbia, Manitoba and Ontario, agencies are…(more)
PRIVATE ADOPTION AGENCIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Non-governmental agencies licensed by the state to provide adoption services, primarily dealing with infant adoptions.
PRIVATE AGENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Non-government adoption agency licensed by the province the agency operates in. Private agencies charge fees for their services
PROBATION PERIOD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Time between placement of a child with the adoptive family and finalization, when the adoption is legalized in court. It varies by province but is at least six months. This applies to both domestic adoptions and international adoptions not finalized abroad. During the probation (or probationary) period, the licensee monitors the adoptive family and adopted child. See Supervision
PROGRESS REPORT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Report.
PROPOSAL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Document giving you information on a specific child you might adopt, such as background, family history and any special needs. Commentary: In international adoption, the foreign authority sends your adoption agency a file on the child matched to you. This proposal may contain a child’s description, photograph or video, medical history and information about special needs, social environment and family history. You accept or reject the proposal
PROTECTIVE FACTORS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Strengths and resources that appear to mediate or serve as a “buffer” against risk factors that contribute to vulnerability to maltreatment or against the negative effects of maltreatment experiences.
PROTOCOL (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An interagency agreement that delineates joint roles and responsibilities by establishing criteria and procedures for working together on cases of child abuse and neglect.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MALTREATMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A pattern of caregiver behavior or extreme incidents that convey to children that they are worthless, flawed, unloved, unwanted, endangered or only of value to meeting another’s needs. This can include parents or caretakers using extreme or bizarre forms of punishment or threatening or terrorizing a child. The term “psychological maltreatment” is also known as emotional abuse or neglect, verbal abuse or mental abuse.
PUBLIC ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
(1) An adoption arranged through a provincial ministry or agency funded by government. See also Public agency (2) In the U.S., public adoptions are arranged through a public child welfare agency, such as the Department of Social Services, or a private child welfare agency, such as Lutheran Children’s Services
PUBLIC ADOPTION AGENCIES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Governmental adoption agency or social services department providing adoption services, primarily dealing with older children in foster care.
PUBLIC AGENCY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Government-funded adoption agency, usually providing services at no cost, e.g. Children’s aid society. Public agencies are responsible for placing with adoptive families the waiting children in their care
PUTATIVE FATHER REGISTRY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
a.k.a. Birth Father Registry, state registry where alleged paternity can be listed and birth fathers have the opportunity to protest the birth mother’s adoption plans. Approximately one-half of the states have a putative registry.
RE-ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Process by where international adoptive parents adopt their children for a second time in front of a U.S. judge.
REACTIVE ATTACHMENT DISORDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A condition with onset before age 5, resulting from an early lack of consistent care, characterized by a child’s or infant’s inability to make appropriate social contact with others. Symptoms may include failure to thrive, developmental delays, failure to make eye contact, feeding disturbances, hyper-sensitivity to touch and sound, failure to initiate or respond to social interaction, indiscriminate sociability, self-stimulation and susceptibility to infection.
RELATIVE ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal adoption of a child by a biological relative, such as a grandparent, uncle or cousin.
RELATIVE PLACEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Kinship care
RELINQUISHMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal act by which birth parents consent to an adoption and give up all legal rights to a child so an adoption can take place.
REPORT, FOLLOW-UP / POST-ADOPTION / PROGRESS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A follow-up or post-adoption report details how an adopted child is doing in her new home in the period after finalization. A progress report tells how a child is adjusting in an adoptive home in the period before finalization. In international adoption, some countries require one or more follow-up reports after you return home. Countries want to know that their children are doing well with their new families. Your adoption agency submits the post-adoption reports to the adoption authority abroad.
RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A structured 24-hour care facility with staff that provide psychological services to help severely troubled children overcome behavioral, emotional, mental or psychological problems that adversely affect family interaction, school achievement and peer relationships.
RESIDENTIAL TREATMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Therapeutic intervention processes for individuals who cannot or do not function satisfactorily in their own homes. For children and adolescents, residential treatment tends to be the last resort when a child is in danger of hurting himself or others.
RESPITE CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Temporary or short-term home care of a child provided for pay or on a voluntary basis by adults other than the parents (birth, foster or adoptive parents).
RESPONSE TIME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A determination made by CPS and law enforcement regarding the immediacy of the response needed to a report of child abuse or neglect.
REUNIFICATION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The returning of foster children to the custody of their parent(s) after placement outside the home.
REUNIFICATION SERVICES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Interventions by social worker and other professionals to help children and their birth parents develop mutually reciprocal relationships that will help them to live together again as a family.
REUNION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A meeting between birthparent(s) and an adopted adult or between an adopted adult and other birth relatives. The adopted adult may have been placed as an infant and thus has no memory of the birthparent(s).
REUNION REGISTRY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In the field of adoption search and reunion, a service allowing adult members of the adoption triad wishing to learn about birth relatives to register personal data and ask to be notified if other parties in that adoption also register.
REVIEW HEARINGS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Held by the juvenile and family court to review dispositions (usually every six months) and to determine the need to maintain placement in out-of-home care or court jurisdiction of a child.
REVOKE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Take back consent to an adoption. Some states offer no time for revocation while other states place a time limit.
RISK (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The likelihood that a child will be maltreated in the future.
RISK ASSESSMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
To assess and measure the likelihood that a child will be maltreated in the future, frequently through the use of checklists, matrices, scales and other methods of measurement.
RISK FACTORS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Behaviors and conditions present in the child, parent or family that will likely contribute to child maltreatment occurring in the future.
RITALIN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A commonly prescribed drug that can help to control some of the symptoms of attention deficit disorder. It may have a calming effect and help to improve concentration.
SAFETY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Absence of an imminent or immediate threat of moderate-to-serious harm to the child.
SAFETY ASSESSMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A part of the CPS case process in which available information is analyzed to identify whether a child is in immediate danger of moderate or serious harm.
SAFETY PLAN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A casework document developed when it is determined that the child is in imminent or potential risk of serious harm. In the safety plan, the caseworker targets the factors that are causing or contributing to the risk of imminent serious harm to the child, and identifies, along with the family, the interventions that will control the safety factors and assure the child’s protection.
SEALED RECORDS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Open records
SEARCH (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An attempt, usually by birthparent, adopted person or adoptive parent (but sometimes by volunteers or paid consultants) to make a connection between the birthparent and the biological child.
SEARCH AND CONSENT PROCEDURES (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Procedures, sanctioned in state law, that authorize a public or private agency to assist a searching party to locate another party to the adoption to determine if the second party agrees to the release of identifying information or to meeting with the requesting party. If consent is given, the disclosure of information may then be authorized by the court. In some states counseling is required before information is received.
SEARCH AND REUNION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
“Search” is a process whereby either a birth parent or an adoptee seeks information about, or contact with, the other. The search process may also involve adoptive parents, volunteers and paid consultants. One result of a search is a “reunion”, when adoptee and birth parent (or other birth relatives) meet. Commentary: When adoptions are closed (see Openness), adoptees and birth parents cannot find each other later in life. It’s not unusual for an adopted child to search for his birth parents when he becomes an older adolescent or adult.
SECONDARY PREVENTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Activities targeted to prevent breakdowns and dysfunctions among families who have been identified as at risk for abuse and neglect.
SEMI-OPEN (CLOSED) ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption where adoptive family and birth parents may talk, meet and have correspondence after the adoption, but no identifying information is exchanged.
SEMI-OPEN ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An adoption in which a child’s birth parents and pre-adoptive parents may exchange primarily non-identifying information. After the child is placed in the adoptive home, contact with the birth family may involve letters or pictures or other communications sent through the intermediary of the adoption agency or the attorney who assisted in the placement.
SERVICE AGREEMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The casework document developed between the CPS caseworker and the family that outlines the tasks necessary to achieve goals and outcomes necessary for risk reduction.
SERVICE PROVIDER, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In Ontario, any of the entities which the ministry approves or licenses to provide adoption services, such as approved adoption practitioners, licensees and children’s aid societies
SERVICE PROVISION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the CPS casework process when CPS and other service providers provide specific services geared toward the reduction of risk of maltreatment.
SEXUAL ABUSE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct or any simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing any visual depiction of such conduct; or rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution or other form of sexual exploitation of children; or incest with children.
SEXUAL ABUSE SYMPTOMOLOGY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Indicators and behaviors which suggest that a child may have been sexually abused, including: excessive masturbation, sexual interaction with peers, sexual aggression towards younger and more naive children, seductive behavior and promiscuity.
SIBLING ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adopting two or more brothers and sisters at the same time. Commentary: Many adoption professionals believe that, whenever possible, siblings should be placed together, or stay in touch through open adoption arrangements.
SOCIAL MARKETING (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The use of marketing principles and techniques to influence a target audience to voluntarily accept, reject, modify or abandon a behavior for the benefit of individuals, groups or society as a whole.
SOCIAL WORKER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Person who completes home studies, works with birth parents and adoptive families in adoption situations.
SPECIAL NEEDS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child with a physical handicap, mental handicap or illness often times considered hard-to-place.
SPECIAL NEEDS CHILD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child with medical, mental, emotional, behavioral, or educational needs that could require extra on-going attention.
SPECIAL NEEDS CHILDREN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Children whose emotional or physical disorders, age, race, membership in a sibling group, a history of abuse or other factors contribute to a lengthy stay in foster care. Guidelines for classifying a child as special needs vary by state. Common special needs conditions and diagnoses include: serious medical conditions, emotional and behavioral disorders, history of abuse or neglect, medical or genetic risk due to familial mental illness or parental substance abuse.
SPEECH AND LANGUAGE DISORDERS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Impairments of speech or receptive language. Speech disorders usually involved difficulties with articulation which can generally be improved or resolved with speech therapy, usually requiring treatment over months or years. Language disorders, on the other hand, often result in substantial learning problems, involving difficulty with language comprehension, expression, word-finding or speech discrimination. Treatment by a language therapist generally leads to improvement in functional communication skills, although treatment cannot be generally expected to eradicate the problem.
STEP ADOPTION / STEP-PARENT ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption of a child by the parent’s new spouse
STEPPARENT ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The adoption of a child by the new spouse of the birthparent.
SUBSIDY, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Government benefit to offset the costs of adopting and raising a special needs child. The benefit may take the form of one-time and monthly payments, medical aid and post-adoption services. Commentary: In Canada, parents adopting children with special needs may get a payment to defray unusual expenses, such as medical and dental expenses, counselling services and therapy not covered by health insurance, availability of social workers for advice and respite care. Amounts and types of subsidies vary…(more)
SUBSTANTIATED (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An investigation disposition concluding that the allegation of maltreatment or risk of maltreatment was supported or founded by state law or state policy. A CPS determination means that credible evidence exists that child abuse or neglect has occurred.
SUBSTITUTE CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Any kind of care sanctioned by the court of jurisdiction in which the child does not live with the birth parent.
SUPERVISION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Process whereby the licensee visits the adoptive home during the probation period, to see if the child is adjusting well and to give advice and support.
SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME (SSI) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A Federally funded needs-based disability program for adults and children which provides monthly cash benefits and, in most states, automatic Medicaid eligibility.
SUPPORT GROUP (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Group of people sharing a common concern or experience who provide support for each other. Adoptive parents use adoption support groups for information, educational activities and seasonal events
SURRENDER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Voluntary termination of parental rights. An action taken by birth parents to voluntarily “make an adoption plan” for a child or “relinquishment? of child for adoption.
SURRENDER PAPERS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Legal document attesting to the signator’s voluntary relinquishment of parental rights to a child.
SURROGATE MOTHER (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A woman who carries another woman’s child by pre-arrangement or by legal contract.
SYSTEM (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Often referred to as “the public child welfare system.” Refers to the network of governmental organizations providing a range of child welfare services.
SYSTEMS OF CARE (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A system of care is a process of partnering an array of service agencies and families, working together to provide individualized care and supports designed to help children and families achieve safety, stability and permanency in their home and community.
TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The process by which a parent’s rights to his or her child are legally and permanently terminated, after which the child becomes eligible for adoption.
TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS (TPR) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The legal process which involuntarily severs a parent’s rights to a child.
TERTIARY PREVENTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Treatment efforts geared to address situations where child maltreatment has already occurred with the goals of preventing child maltreatment from occurring in the future and of avoiding the harmful effects of child maltreatment.
THERAPEUTIC (OR TREATMENT) FOSTER HOME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A foster home in which the foster parents have received special training to care for a wide variety of children and adolescents, usually those with significant emotional or behavioral problems. Parents in therapeutic foster homes are more closely supervised and assisted more than parents in regular foster homes.
TOURETTE’S SYNDROME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A treatable neurological disorder that consists of involuntary “tic” movements or vocalizations that become more apparent under stress. Common manifestations include shoulder-shrugging, neck-jerking, facial twitches, coughing, grunting, throat clearing, sniffing, snorting and barking. Children with Tourette’s often have problems with hyperactivity as well.
TRADITIONAL ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Most often used to refer to a domestic infant adoption in which confidentiality is preserved. Equivalent to a Closed adoption.
TRANSRACIAL ADOPTION / TRANSCULTURAL ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Adoption of a child of one race by a family of a different race. In the converse, “same-race adoption”, child and parent are the same race. A related term is “transcultural adoption”, in which child and family differ in culture or ethnic group. Most transracial adoptions are also transcultural. Commentary: The adoptive family needs to be sensitive to racism and to respect their child’s ethnicity and culture of origin. Living in a diverse community helps build a child’s positive attitude toward her…(more)
TREATMENT (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
The stage of the child protection case process when specific services are provided by CPS and other providers to reduce the risk of maltreatment, support families in meeting case goals and address the effects of maltreatment.
TREATMENT FOSTER HOME (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A foster home in which the foster parents are trained to offer treatment to children with moderate to severe emotional problems; also known as therapeutic foster home.
TRIAD, ADOPTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
In the field of adoption search and reunion, the three parties involved in an adoption: birth parent, adoptive parent and adoptee. Some use the term “adoption circle” or “adoption constellation”, to include other parties such as adoption professionals.
U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES BUREAU (USCIS) (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An agency of the federal government that approves an adopted child’s immigration into the United States and grants U.S. citizenship to children adopted from other countries.
UNIVERSAL PREVENTION (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Activities and services directed at the general public with the goal of stopping the occurrence of maltreatment before it starts. Also referred to as “primary prevention.”
UNSUBSTANTIATED (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
An investigation disposition that determines that there is not sufficient evidence under State law or policy to conclude that the child has been maltreated or at risk of maltreatment. A CPS determination means that credible evidence does not exist that child abuse or neglect has occurred.
VETO (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
See Disclosure
VOLUNTARY ADOPTION REGISTRY (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A reunion registry system which allows adoptees, birthparents and biological siblings to locate each other if they wish by maintaining a voluntary list of adoptees and birth relatives.
WAITING CHILD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
A child currently available for adoption. Waiting children may be in the U.S. foster care system, might be older, or could be special needs children.
WAITING CHILDREN (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Children in the public child welfare system who cannot return to their birth homes and need permanent, loving families to help them grow up safe and secure.
WAITING PERIOD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Typically refers to the time period which must lapse between birth and the time the consent to the adoption can be signed by the birth parents (varies from state to state).
WARD / CROWN WARD / PERMANENT WARD (Adoption and Family Law Dictionary)
Status of a child declared by the court to be in care of the state. Commentary: If parents are unable to care for a child, she may be admitted into the care of a child welfare agency. If efforts to reunite child with family fail, the court may make the child a ward of the province, giving parental rights to the state. Then the agency develops a permanency plan. Because the parents have lost their parental rights, a ward is eligible to be adopted. The term is “crown ward” in Ontario, “permanent ward” elsewhere