Understanding the Legal Issues

Provides an overview of State laws that provide the legal basis for terminating the rights of parents who have been found unfit to parent their children. The circumstances under which the court may find that termination may not serve the child's best interests and under which a parent's rights may be reinstated also are addressed.

This factsheet discusses laws that require child welfare agencies to make reasonable efforts to provide services that will help families remedy the conditions that brought the child and family into the child welfare system. The issues examined include what constitutes reasonable efforts, when reasonable efforts are required to be made, and the circumstances under which reasonable efforts to reunify the family are not required. Summaries of laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.

Presents an overview of state laws regarding the proper execution of consent when a child is placed for adoption. Consent refers to the agreement by a parent, or a person or agency acting in place of a parent, to relinquish a child for adoption and release all rights and duties with respect to that child. The topics covered include the persons who must consent to a child's adoption, the child's consent to his or her adoption, timeframes for consent, and guidelines for revocation of consent. Summaries of laws for all states and U.S. territories are included.

Provides an overview of State laws related to the rights of unmarried fathers and the methods by which a man may establish a legal parent-child relationship with his child. The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the constitutional protection of an unmarried father's parental rights when he has established a substantial relationship with his child. The circumstances in which a man may be presumed to be the father of a child, the use of putative fathers' registries, the use of genetic tests to establish parentage, and the right of rescission of paternity claims also are discussed. Summaries of laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.

Summarizes State laws regarding eligibility for becoming an adoptive parent (in terms of marital status, age, residency, and more), eligibility for being adopted as a child or adult, and authority to place a child for adoption.