Colorado Domestic Adoption

Colorado Domestic Adoption Attorney

At The Law Office of Seth A. Grob, we believe that every child deserves a permanent, stable, loving, and nurturing family. It is our goal to make that situation a reality for as many children as possible by carefully and thoughtfully handling the adoption process for families throughout the state of Colorado. For more than 17 years, Mr. Grob has been assisting adoptive parents, birth parents, and adoption agencies in domestic adoptions and international adoptions of all types. Please contact us to discuss your unique family building needs.

Helping to Build Families

Every family is unique. We assist prospective adoptive parents in understanding the advantages and disadvantages of all of their options, so they can make well-informed decisions for the development of their individual families. We handle all types of adoptions, including:

• Agency Infant and Toddler Adoption: We can review and make recommendations on agencies. Our firm can also handle the termination of parental rights, finalizing the adoption, obtaining a new Social Security number, and review and negotiate agency contracts.
  
• Designated Adoption: A designated adoption occurs when clients come into our office and they have already found a perspective birth parent that wants to place their child with the family. We can review the situation and clarify your options.
  
• Step-Parent Adoption: We assist the step-parent in forming a new legal relationship. Our firm also helps clients determine if the parental rights of the other parent may be involuntarily terminated, such as in situations where child support has not been paid for a year or longer or the child has been abandoned for a year or longer.
  
• Relative Adoption: According to the kinship adoption statute, a grandparent, brother, sister, half-sibling, aunt, uncle, or first cousin may seek to adopt a child if they have had the child in their physical care for a year or longer. Oftentimes, no agency involvement is necessary.
  
• Custodial Adoption: There is a specific Colorado statute that allows a non-relative to adopt a child if they have had the child in their physical care for a year or longer, they have legal custody or guardianship of the child, and the birth parents have abandoned or failed to pay child support for a year or longer. No agency involvement is typically needed.
  
• Foster Parent Adoption: After a significant amount of time and the formulation of a parent/child psychological relationship, a foster parent may pursue the adoption of their foster child. We can represent foster parents in court and help them ensure that the child becomes legally free for adoption or are chosen to adopt over other individuals.
  
• Intrastate and Interstate Adoption: When adoptive parents and birth parents reside in different areas and states, different adoption laws may apply. The Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC) may be applicable to a situation where the child is residing in one state and is sought to be adopted by a parent in another state. Both states must approve the placement. We can assist in these matters and also litigate when ICPC offices have declined the placement.
  
• Adoption of a Special Needs Child: We help clients understand the specific eligibility requirements and benefits available under Federal and State law when adopting a special needs child. There may be government reimbursements available for adoption expenses and subsidies for the care of the child.
  
• Closed and Open Adoption: We draft agreements regarding the terms of an open adoption (where there is ongoing communication between birth parent and child) or closed adoption.
  
• Same Sex/Second Parent Adoption: Recently, a new law was passed allowing a non-married couple to adopt children. We represent the interests of all non-traditional families, including gay/lesbian couples who want to proceed with the adoption process.
  
• Contested Adoption: When a presumed or putative birth father or other relative seeks to object to an adoption plan, we can help you deal with this contested adoption by legally freeing the child and terminating the parental rights whenever possible.

Our firm also handles matters of international adoption and disrupted adoption. In all of the adoptions that we handle, we attempt to identify any risks early on in the process to address issues as soon as possible.

We also assist birth parents in choosing adoptive parents, negotiating an open adoption agreement, and legally severing their parental rights so the child can be adopted. We advise them in all legal issues involved, such as travel, medical issues, living expenses, and counseling referrals.

It is important that all parties understand the state and federal laws that pertain to their situations. Unique laws apply to the adoption of Native American and special needs children, and the adoption of a child whose birth father contests the adoption. Certain complexities may also exist for same-sex couples seeking to adopt. We guide our clients through the entire adoption process and clearly explain their rights to them.

In many adoption arrangements, the federal adoption tax credit can significantly offset or eliminate attorney's fees. Let us help you build your family. Please contact us for insightful, caring guidance throughout the adoption process from an experienced adoption lawyer.

The Law Office of Seth A. Grob
31425 Forestland Drive
Evergreen, CO 80439
Phone: 303-679-8266
Fax: 303-679-8960

Fellow of the American Academy of Assisted Reproductive Technology Attorneys