Using The Law To Bring Families Together
In South Carolina, all adoptions of minors require a guardian ad litem to be appointed to represent the interest of the minor. In Horry County, the guardian ad litem is an Attorney.
The purpose of the guardian ad litem is to perform an investigation to determine if the adoption is in the best interest of…
A Consent and Relinquishment is invalid if the attorney-witness fails to be present when the birth mother (or father) signed the document and both witnesses failed to observe the statutorily-required discussion of the provisions of the Consent and Relinquishment.
Practice Point: Make sure both witnesses are in the room with the birth mother or father…
Almost any time that you have a multistate adoption, you trigger the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children. One way to determine if ICPC is triggered is to determine if the Sending Agency sent, brought, or caused to be sent or brought any child to another party state for the purposes of adoption.
Sending…
Below is a checklist required for Horry and Georgetown Counties. I use this checklist with all my adoption files. The checklist is simple to use and covers most requirements of the court. One suggestion before attempting an adoption in a county you are not familiar with is to contact the administrative judge’s office for local…
In Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, the United States Supreme Court, in essence, says that an absentee Indian cannot rely on ICWA to challenge an adoption. The Court said that the heightened standard outlined in ICWA does not apply to a parent that has not either had physical or legal custody of the child. The essence of the ICWA is to preserve…
"Don’t let a child’s outward appearance fool you. All internatioally adopted children–even ‘chubby,’ ‘stocky,’ and ‘solid-looking’ ones–are at risk for malnutrition! ‘Don’t let a child’s outward appearance fool you. Continue reading here.
PRESS RELEASE
Indian Child Welfare Act Panel to be Held at University of South Carolina School of Law
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 11, 2013
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Victoria Middleton
Executive Director,
ACLU of SC
843-720-1424
aclu_sc@aclusouthcarolina.org
Dr. Marcia Zug
Professor, University of
South Carolina School of
Law
803-777-3615
zug@law.sc.edu
Chief Bill Harris
Catawba Indian…
Terminating a parent’s rights or taking his consent and relinquishment without a pending adoption primarily occurs in DSS cases. The Court approving a Consent and Relinquishment or terminating a parent’s rights without a pending adoption is rare in private actions. The person would have had to have done something egregious to warrant a Court terminating…