Philadelphia Adoptions Attorney
Are you concerned about protecting your property rights, even though you have no children or heirs of your own? Would you like to formalize a parent-child relationship with a former stepchild or foster child? Do you wish you had legally adopted the children of your spouse, but fear that you can’t, now that they are legal adults?
At the Philadelphia Law Office of Jensen Bagnato, P.C., we have provided a broad range of family law services to men and women in Pennsylvania and New Jersey since 1984. We employ an interdisciplinary approach, examining your legal issues from a number of different perspectives, so that we can identify any potential roadblocks and help you take the right steps to accomplish your objectives. When necessary, we will work with other lawyers or law firms to identify and implement solutions that meet your specific needs. We offer creative and innovative legal thinking in a results-oriented manner.
Helping You with an Adult Adoption
Unbeknownst to most people, adoption proceedings are not restricted to the placement of minor children. There are situations where adult adoptions can serve a meaningful purpose, including the protection of property rights or the care of an elderly or incapacitated adult. In fact, adult adoptions were fairly common in ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, serving to solidify and maintain a family name or dynasty.
In today’s world, adult adoptions are generally pursued for one of three reasons:
- to facilitate the transfer of property at death. Though property can be distributed by will, trust or other legal means, an adult adoption will also make the adopted person the legal heir of the parent.
- to legalize an informal parent-child relationship. If you lived with and functioned as the parent to your spouse’s children, you can still adopt them after they have become adults. This may be done primarily for personal reasons or to facilitate the transfer of property or convey rights on the child.
- to ensure that a person receives long-term care
. You may choose to adopt an adult who has diminished mental or physical capacity, so that you can ensure that they will receive the care they need throughout their lifetime.
The adoption of an adult has the same legal effect and ramifications as a child adoption. A new birth certificate will be issued, showing the adoptive parent as the birth parent. The adopted person may change his or her last name to that of the adopting parent.
When you hire us to assist you with an adult adoption, we will prepare all the necessary documentation to complete the process, and will act as your advocate in all hearings or proceedings to complete the adoption. If you are considering an adult adoption primarily as a means of legally changing your name, we can help you accomplish that goal more easily with a simple name change request.
Pennsylvania Child Adoption Law
If you are considering or are involved in adoption proceedings, you want an experienced adoption attorney to help you through the process. Whether you seek to adopt domestically or internationally, are a grandparent seeking to adopt a grandchild, or are interested in adopting a step-child, you want an attorney who fully understands the law and the process, one who has successfully helped others in similar circumstances.
At Jensen Bagnato, P.C., a Professional Corporation, we have over 26 years of experience in
family law matters, including adoptions. Our lawyers take an interdisciplinary approach, looking at your problems from a number of different perspectives, so that we can identify any potential roadblocks and help you take the right steps to achieve your objectives. When necessary, we will work with other lawyers or law firms to identify and put in place solutions that meet your specific needs. We offer creative and innovative legal thinking in a results-oriented manner.
Our Philadelphia Adoption Practice
Our adoption attorneys handle all matters related to adoption, preparing and filing all the documents necessary to complete the process, and acting as your liaison in meetings or hearings with birth parents, adoptive parents, adoption agencies and the courts. We handle a broad range of adoptions including
- domestic or international adoptions. We work with people who seek to adopt through a placement within the United States, or if you want to adopt through a foreign country, such as China, Guatemala or Korea.
- open or closed adoptions. We can assist you in situations where the birth and adoptive parents know each other (open adoptions) or where you seek to adopt or place a child for adoption, but don’t want any contact with the other party (closed adoptions).
- grandparent or relative adoptions. If you are the relative of a child in need, including a grandparent, we can work with you to help you secure full legal parental rights by adopting the child.
- stepparent adoptions. If you have married a woman with children and want to legally adopt her children, or you want your new husband to have full parental rights with your children from a previous marriage, we can help you complete the adoption process. When necessary, we will help you obtain a termination of parental rights.
Contact Our Offices
To schedule a free initial consultation, call us at 215-798-0544. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We accept all major credit cards and will set up a payment plan, if necessary.
