Adoption

I am Michael Efron, a lawyer in Anaheim Hills, California, who has devoted his entire career to the practice of family law. I provide highly experienced, personalized service to help clients make their dreams of adoption a reality.

I have helped thousands of clients achieve their goals in their family law matters. If you would like to schedule an initial confidential consultation, I would be happy to meet with you. Call (714) 779-9800or (949) 720-0117 or Contact my office online any time.

Step – Parent and Grandparent Adoptions

What it takes to Adopt a Child

Whether you are a step-parent who wishes to adopt your spouse’s child or a grandparent who wishes to adopt your son or daughter’s child, the adoption process is fairly standardized and straightforward. You need to fill out certain paperwork, live with the child for a temporary trial period and allow social workers to evaluate your home environment.

Since a child can legally have only one male and one female parent at any given time, adoptive parents also need to terminate the parental rights of the living biological parents whom they wish to replace. Sometimes, the biological parent is cooperative, but often the adoptive parents need to hold a Termination of Parental Rights proceeding to show that they are unfit to be parents.

Guardianship: a Workable Alternative to Adoption

If you are unable to terminate the parental rights of the biological parent, you can ask the court to grant you guardianship over the child. Guardianship grants you the same authority to care for the child and make decisions about his or her upbringing as adoption. The main difference is that you don’t have the legal status of “parent.”

If you would like to schedule an initial consultation to discuss your legal matter with me, just call (714) 779-9800 or (949) 720-0117 or Contact my office online any time.