Welcoming another person into your family is a life-changing and rewarding experience. Whether you are adopting a baby, stepchild or foster child, you need legal guidance on the laws and procedures governing the adoption process. The skilled adoption attorneys at Johnson Duffie in Harrisburg, PA, can guide you through every step of this journey, helping you bring young and adult children into your family.
Our family law lawyers have extensive experience in private adoptions, including families who wish to expand their homes and stepparents or grandparents welcoming a loved one. Our attorneys will take you step by step through the adoption process, providing counsel and representation as you:
Our Harrisburg adoption attorneys have experience in all types of adoptions, including but not limited to the following services.
Whether you’re working with a private agency or adopting a foster child, Johnson Duffie can help you adopt a child who is not biologically or legally related to you. We can guide you through these proceedings and ensure you understand all legal documents before you sign.
When a stepparent or grandparent adopts a child, this process can formalize the existing child custody situation. We help transfer guardianship so the child’s true caregiver gains all parental rights and responsibilities. A stepparent or grandparent adoption may also involve terminating a parent’s rights.
International adoptions are becoming increasingly complex to navigate without legal counsel. Additional steps, such as immigration procedures and international adoption regulations, must be followed to ensure a seamless adoption process.
If you are a birth parent who has made the difficult decision to place your child with adoptive parents, it’s important to understand your legal rights and the documents you will be signing.
Your adoption may involve requesting that the Court terminate a parent’s rights. There are many nuances to 23 Pa.C.S. §2502, the statute that addresses proceedings prior to petition to adopt, including voluntary and involuntary termination. It’s important to let our adoption lawyers handle these situations and ensure you have sufficient evidence to show termination of parental rights is in your child’s best interest.
The adoption lawyers at Johnson Duffie are compassionate advocates who can guide you through the intricacies and complexities of the Pennsylvania adoption process. With deep ties in Dauphin County, we help make the adoption process a source of celebration, not stress, so that you can enjoy the experience of expanding your family.
Our adoption attorneys will take the time to understand your family unit’s unique circumstances and tailor our services to meet your needs. We bring decades of experience and aim to achieve exceptional results for our clients, championing your family’s best interests to get you the outcome you deserve.
Schedule a consultation with a Johnson Duffie attorney to discuss your unique adoption situation.
