Adoption
Private Adoption (Independent & Agency)
Independent and agency adoptions handled with care for both adoptive parents and birth parents.
What private adoption looks like
Private adoption includes every adoption that is not initiated by the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department. That covers agency adoptions, where an agency helps adoptive parents identify a child available for adoption, as well as independent adoptions, where birth parents have personally chosen a friend or family member to adopt their child.
Compassionate work with birth parents
We strive to recognize the courage and compassion birth parents show when they decide that an adoptive home is in the best interest of their child. Birth parents deserve clear information, independent counsel when appropriate, and a process that respects their voice from start to finish.
Representing adoptive parents
“Adoptive parents need a lawyer who can move quickly when an opportunity presents itself and who has the experience to anticipate every requirement — home study, consents, ICPC if the placement crosses state lines, and the orders required to finalize the adoption..”
Adoptive parents need a lawyer who can move quickly when an opportunity presents itself and who has the experience to anticipate every requirement — home study, consents, ICPC if the placement crosses state lines, and the orders required to finalize the adoption.
Working with adoption agencies
We coordinate routinely with reputable adoption agencies in New Mexico and across the country. That coordination keeps the legal side of the adoption aligned with the social work and counseling components that the agency provides.
Drafting consents and termination orders
Properly drafted consents to adoption and termination of parental rights are the legal foundation of a finalized adoption. We prepare these documents with the care they require, because mistakes at this stage can unravel years of careful work.
Finalization and post-placement follow-through
“Finalization is the moment families have been waiting for.”
Finalization is the moment families have been waiting for. We make sure the petition, supporting affidavits, ICPC documentation, and home study are in order, and we stand with our clients in court when the adoption decree is entered.