Adoption

In 1979 a healthy baby girl was born in a hospital. The baby was given to an adoption agency which was a division of Social Services in a different county. The adoption agency placed the child in a foster home. There she was finally given a name, Julie. Julie stayed there for 2 months. In two months she was adopted into a loving home where she spent the rest of her childhood. When she turn 18 years old she went to the courthouse to find out who her biological mother was but, to her dismay she was only asked to sign a consent form and told that they would send her the information she requested. Was this fair? What was the law? This young adult had to wait 18 years to have to wait a couple of more months to get a letter tell her that she could only receive non-identifying information. The adoption process in the state of Michigan is a very unfair process to the adoptive child.

What is adoption? Adoption is where a birth parent or parents give a child or children to another permanently. Parents can also terminate his or her own rights. Children can be adopted for varies reasons like parents rights are lost or terminated by the courts from neglect or abuse, parents not being able to care for there children financially or emotionally, or parents just not wanting their child. In Michigan the adoption can be open or closed. Open adoptions are when biological parents and children have some type of contact and know each other or maybe have visits with each other. According to Wikipeda, Closed adoptions are when the biological parents have no contact with each other and the record of the natural (birth parents) is kept sealed(1).

In 1980, in Michigan passed a law that all parents that give their children up for adoption must have a signed consent form in their file. The consent form gives permission to the probate court, Family Independence Agency and the adoption agency to give the child, once he has turn 18 years of age, the identifying information. If no consent form is on file and pending when the adoption was finalized a child may only receiving non-identifying information.

Non-Identifying Information contain the date, time, and place of birth. The City, state and hospital where child was born. The child's, parents, and sibling’s health and genetic history. Information on the child's performance in schools, test results, and any special needs. A general description of the birth parents including age birth or termination of rights, if married the length of time. If rights were terminated the circumstances of any court order. The status of termination, whether voluntary or court order. Identifying information, is considered as the name of child before adoption, the name of the biological parents, the most recent name and address of biological parents, and the name of any siblings at time of termination.

When there is no consent form in your file you can request the help of a confidential Intermediary. A confidential Intermediary appointed through the court will search for the biological parents. If found they will let the biological parent know that the child is requesting