Second-Parent Adoptions in Massachusetts
A legally-binding adoption is necessary for a gay or lesbian couple to truly secure their children and themselves into a family unit. Second-parent adoption gives both parents legal authority over a child. That legal authority provides each parents with the formal right to participate in decisions about important issues like education and medical treatment.
Attorney Polly A. Tatum has offered a full range of family law services to gay and lesbian families, including second-parent adoption petitions. To schedule a paid consultation at our Worcester law office, call 508-425-4763 or contact us online.
The Benefits of Second-Parent Adoption
The purpose of second-parent adoptions is to strengthen the family unit and bestow upon the adoptive parent the same legal rights enjoyed by biological parents. These rights include:
- Involvement in educational decisions
- Participating in decisions about the child's medical care, religious upbringing and education
- Allowing the child to automatically inherit from the adoptive parent, even in the absence of a specific estate plan
- Giving the child the legal right to seek Social Security or survivor benefits in the event of the adoptive parent's death
Completing the Adoption Process
Massachusetts has a general six-month residency requirement for adoptions. This means that the child must live with the pre-adoptive parent within the State of Massachusetts for at least six months before an adoption petition can be approved. Although waivers of that residency requirement cannot be guaranteed, a recent trend in the family courts of Massachusetts is to allow same-sex adoptions to proceed without that waiting period.
The proceeding at which the judge approves the adoption petition may be attended by family members and friends. The proceeding is held in a closed courtroom or in the judge's chambers, photographs is usually allowed, and there can be more of a feel of a private celebration, not just a legal action.
Contact the Law Office of Polly A. Tatum
To discuss a second-parent adoption with experienced adoption lawyer Polly A. Tatum, contact us for a paid consultation. You can call us at 508-425-4763 or send us an e-mail to make an appointment.
