How Do I Find a Good Adoption Attorney?
What should you look for in an adoption attorney? You need to be an educated consumer of legal services. While there are many excellent attorneys, not all of them are adoption attorneys. Some questions to ask:
- How long have you been handling adoptions?
- How many adoptions do you handle per year?
- What percentage of your practice is devoted to adoptions?
- What types of adoptions do you regularly handle? (ie. Step-parent only? Agency? Private? Interstate? Foreign? Contested? SWAN?)
- Do you represent any adoption agencies? Which ones?
- Do you teach or speak to any groups about adoptions? Which ones?
- Are you a member of any adoption organizations? Which ones?
- Why did you choose to handle adoption cases?
- Are you available outside normal business hours if necessary?
- How do you charge for your legal services?
- Can you give me an estimate of the total cost?
- What types of services do you provide to adoptive parents?
- What types of services do you provide to birthmothers and birthfathers?
- Do you have support staff available to assist in the adoption process?
