The Road to Adoption in  Florida

Photo by Subbotina.

Call Florida’s Adoption Information Center

The first step is setting up a home study.  To get started, call Florida’s Adoption Information Center at 1-800-96-ADOPT or 1-904-353-0679 to be referred to an adoption worker who can help you begin the process.

Attend an orientation

An orientation is a one to two hour presentation that will allow you to meet and talk with adoptive parents and counselors who can provide an overview of the entire adoption process from start to finish.

Take a preparation class

The state of Florida has several classes and courses you can take in preparation for adoption. These courses are mandatory, but your local adoption agency can inform you on which ones are available for you to take.

Complete a home study

Home studies are done to ensure that the child is going to a safe home. During a home study, local, state and federal background checks will be conducted on all adults living in the household. You will also need to get references from your employer, character references from family members and references from school officials if you have any other children in school. Then a social worker will visit your home.

Get approval

Once the above processes are complete, you will either be approved or denied.

What factors are considered for grandparent custody or visitation?

Grandparents can be awarded court-granted custody or visitation only when certain statues implemented by the state are met. Each state may consider slightly different factors and it is best to understand these factors before filing a petition with the court. In the state of Florida, the court may order visitation if it is in the best interest of the child and one of the three following conditions have been met:

• The parents’ marriage has been dissolved
• A parent has deserted the child
• The child was born out of wedlock and the parents never marry

How does the court determine the best interest of the child?

Photo by Catherine Scott.

Every court considers the best interests of the child when granting custody or visitation to a grandparent. Before making a decision the court looks at all of the following factors. The absence of one factor make their decision go one way or the other.

• The willingness of the grandparents to encourage a close relationship between the child and parents
• The length and quality of the relationship between the grandparents and child before the divorce
• If the child is old enough to express a preference, that preference will be considered
• The mental and physical health of the child
• The mental and physical health of the grandparent
• The judge may also consider any other relevant factors

If you’d like to speak to a lawyer about your grandparent rights, contact us here.

Photo by subbotina.

Beyond the courtroom, the Guardian ad Litem program in Florida fosters healthy relationships between Guardian ad Litems and children. In their appointed Guardian ad Litem, the children can find an advocate when they might have felt alone before. In fact, the program’s slogan “I am for the Child,” reflects the importance the GAL has in the child’s life. Often, the child finds a role model, mentor, and friend in their GAL. Floridians are able to volunteer to be a Guardian ad Litem through their website at: https://guardianadlitem.org/. There are no legal education requirements in order to become a child advocate. You must, however, be compassionate and fight for the child’s rights at all times.

GAL’s are typically used in cases where child custody is trying to be determined, where child abuse is suspected, where emancipation is requested, and more. In most divorce cases, GALs are brought in when there is any concern that the child’s best interest is not truly being sought.

Photo by muha04.

As many people know, expecting and new mothers are generally granted some form of paid maternity leave to spend time at home with the newborn baby. In fact, most states require employers to give new mothers a regulated amount of paid maternity leave. Social studies have shown that parents spending more time washing, changing and playing with the baby as a newborn will have a stronger bond and continue to do these things after the period of paid leave at a higher rate than parents who do not take any leave. It makes logical sense to our rational brains, spending more time with the baby as an infant must be a positive thing for a loving parent. This study is true for both parents, both the mother and the father, though paternity leave is not discussed as much as may not be required by the man’s employer.

Some progressive companies offer new fathers paid leave, and some states have recently passed paid leave laws, so the best way to find out if you or your husband are eligible for paternity leave is to contact the Human Resources professional at your company.

Hundreds of employers, including federal, state, public, and education agencies are required by the Employers:

• public agencies, including State, local and Federal employers, and local education agencies (schools); and,
• private sector employers who employ 50 or more employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year – including joint employers and successors of covered employers.

Employee Eligibility:

• have worked for that employer for at least 12 months; and
• have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave; and,
• work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed at the location or within 75 miles of the location.

Any new parent should look into their paternity leave options, even through adoption or the foster program. Federal guidelines require a 30 day notice my an employee to their employer about the upcoming leave. It is generally wise to consider discussing your leave with your company at the same time you announce your pregnancy—as that leaves months to figure out the exact details of your leave comfortably.

What if your employer denies your paternity leave?

If you are sure you and your company qualify by the FMLA guidelines, or your state/local law, and you’ve given the required notice, it is important to remind your employer of these laws. If necessary you can even hire an attorney to remind your employers even better about what the laws dictate.

The regulations around finding new homes for children are much more complex, and for valid reason. The legal way for a child to find a loving new family is usually called adoption, but it is not the only way that people can find their child a new family.

Most often happening to adopted foreign children, so-called “re-homing” often involves underground organizations, no laws, no consultations, no interviews, and no oversight by any qualified child care individuals. It is taking an adopted child that did not mesh well with a host family, and slipping them to a new host family.

When a couple adopts a child, there are a lot of legal technicalities that need to be met. The child must be in good health both physically and mentally, the parents must go through extensive interviews and tests, and every checkbox that can be checked is checked.

Even still, sometimes it is not a good fit.

When that happens, putting a child back up through the adoption system is extremely difficult. Therefore, couples will sometimes obtain a power of attorney to allow them to simply pass the children off to a new couple. The new couple cannot call themselves parents, and are merely guardians. This allows parents of adopted children to basically sidestep all the legality related to moving children through the system, as well as all the wellness checks in systems such as child welfare agencies.

While illegal in Florida, re-homing is still legal in quite a few states (although the list is shrinking), so individuals must be extremely careful about any adoption that crosses state borders. Just recently, a judge in New York took a broad step against re-homing by putting a pre-emptive ban on a couple that is seeking a new home for their children. The couple claims they were grossly lied to about the mental state of the foreign children they adopted, and are seeking all their options.

Re-homing is currently a felony in Florida, and legislation was proposed last year to make it a felony to even advertise a child for adoption.

Source: https://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/30/judge-rehoming-kids-is-trafficking.html

The idea of becoming a foster parent just hit him one day, after seeing something on TV. Unlike most of us, he decided to take action, and qualified himself by getting foster parent training. Then, as he took on foster children with varying needs, he learned by experience. He has been a foster parent to kids with all kinds of backgrounds, from all races, from all circumstances.

Here is one person, who took action, and who is blessing the lives of many, as a result. Truly, actions speak louder than words.

Interested? Curious?

• Florida Department of Children and Families can give you more details on becoming a foster parent, at Fostering Florida’s Future.

• Devereaux Florida is always recruiting new foster parents.

• How Do I Become a Foster Parent?

Original Story by Kate Santich, in Orlando Sentinel