Category Archives: Adoption

Florida Same-Sex Marriage – Will I Be On My Child’s Birth Certificate?

It has long been the law in Florida that when a child is born during an intact marriage between a man and a woman, the husband shall be placed on the birth certificate.  Generally, this is the case even if … Continue reading

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Is Florida’s Gay Adoption Ban Still On The Books?

Most people know that, for a long time, Florida did not permit gay individuals to adopt children. Florida’s adoption laws were and are mainly based on the best interests of the child.  Even if a prospective adoptive parent were a convicted … Continue reading

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Florida Adult Adoption and ObamaCare

There is now a new reason for adult foster children to consider formalizing their relationship via a Florida adoption: health insurance coverage for young adults under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as ObamaCare. Though the law has been … Continue reading

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Florida Same Sex Relationships: Do I Need To Adopt My Child?

In general, when a baby is born in an intact marriage, that baby is considered the legal child of both spouses.  Similarly, when a married person adopts a child, that child is oftentimes considered the legal child of that married … Continue reading

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Florida Gay Adoption: The Man And The Ban

I recently wrote a guess blog for South Florida Estate and Business Planning Attorney Barry Haimo on the end of Florida’s categoral ban on adoptions by homosexual individuals.  Below is a reproduction of the article: In 1977, the Florida Legislature … Continue reading

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Florida Adult Adoption and Inheritence

When clients come to me and ask about the effects of Florida adult adoption, one subject that often comes up is how an adult adoptee will be treated for purposes of inheritance and the laws of intestacy.  Florida estate planning … Continue reading

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Baby Veronica Adoption Case Decided By U.S. Supreme Court

I have previously written about the adoption case of Baby Veronica.  In this case, a South Carolina court ordered a child to be taken from her prospective adoptive parents’ home and to be placed in her biological father’s home even … Continue reading

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I’m An Adult. Can My Stepparent Adopt Me?

When people think of adoption, they generally envision an adult adopting a minor child.  The adult may be a close relative or stepparent of the child, or not related to the child at all, but this is seen as the … Continue reading

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Five Legal Steps Florida LGBT Parents Should Take

The unfortunate truth is that current Florida law is not conducive to recognizing the relationships that develop in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender families.  However, there are steps that Florida and Tampa Bay LGBT parents can take to boost the … Continue reading

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32 Year Old Man Legally Adopted

CNN has been reporting the story of Maurice Smith, a man who was adopted by his foster parents. Mr. Smith was an adult (32 years old) at the time of the adoption. Below is the video: As in this story, … Continue reading

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