Title 15A, Title 15A: Adoption Act

§ 3-404. Investigation and notice to unknown father (a) It is important to the adoptee to have nonidentifying information, including health history, about his or her biological father, and for identifying information about him to be available upon the adoptee’s majority. It is th…

§ 3-405. Waiver of notice (a) A person entitled to receive notice required under this part may waive the notice before the court or in a consent, relinquishment, or other written document signed by the person or on behalf of the person. (b) Except as provided in subsection (c) of…

§ 3-406. Filing proof of service Proof of service of notice on each person entitled to receive notice under this part, or a certified copy of each waiver of notice, shall be on file with the court before the hearing on the adoption begins. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)…

§ 3-501. Authorization A petition to terminate the relationship between a parent or an alleged parent and a minor child may be filed in a proceeding for adoption under this title by: (1) a parent or a guardian who has selected a prospective adoptive parent for a minor and who int…

§ 3-502. Time and content of petition (a) A petition under this part may be filed at any time before entry of a decree of adoption. (b) The petition shall be signed and verified by the petitioner, filed with the court, and state: (1) the name and address of the petitioner; (2) th…

§ 3-503. Service of petition and notice (a) A petition to terminate under this part and a notice of hearing on the petition shall be served upon the respondent in the manner prescribed in section 3-403 of this title. (b) The notice of a hearing shall inform the respondent of the …

§ 3-504. Grounds for terminating relationship of parent and child (a) If a respondent answers or appears at the hearing and asserts parental rights, the court shall proceed with the hearing expeditiously. If the court finds, upon clear and convincing evidence, that any one of the…

§ 3-505. Effect of order granting petition (a) An order issued under this part granting the petition: (1) terminates the relationship of parent and child between the respondent and the minor; (2) extinguishes any right the respondent had to withhold consent to a proposed adoption…

§ 3-506. Effect of order denying petition (a) If the court fails to find a ground stated in section 3-504 of this title for terminating a relationship of parent and child, the court shall deny the petition to terminate and enter an order as follows: (1) if the parent who was not …

§ 3-601. Evaluation during proceeding for adoption (a) Not later than five business days after a complete petition for adoption of a minor is filed, the court shall order that an evaluation be made by: (1) a qualified employee of the agency that placed the minor for adoption; or …

§ 3-602. Content of post placement evaluation (a) An evaluation shall be based on a personal interview with the petitioner in the petitioner’s residence and observation of the relationship between the minor adoptee and the petitioner. (b) An evaluation shall be in writing and con…

§ 3-603. Time and filing of evaluation (a) The evaluator shall complete a written evaluation and file it with the court within 60 days after receipt of the court’s order for an evaluation, unless the court for good cause allows a later filing. (b) If an evaluation produces a conc…

§ 3-701. Time for hearing on petition The hearing on the petition shall take place no sooner than 180 days after the minor has been placed in the home of the adopting parent. For good cause, the court may shorten the time for the hearing. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 3-702. Disclosure of fees and charges At least ten days before the hearing: (1) the petitioner shall file with the court a signed and verified accounting of any payment or disbursement of money or anything of value made or agreed to be made by or on behalf of the petitioner in …

§ 3-703. Granting petition for adoption (a) The court shall grant a petition for adoption if it determines by a preponderance of the evidence that the adoption will be in the best interests of the minor, and that: (1) the adoptee has been in the physical custody of the petitioner…

§ 3-704. Denial of petition for adoption If a court denies a petition for adoption, it shall dismiss the proceeding and issue an appropriate order for the legal and physical custody of the minor. If the reason for the denial is that a consent or relinquishment is revoked or set a…

§ 3-705. Decree of adoption (a) A decree of adoption shall state or contain: (1) the original name of the minor adoptee, if the adoption is by a stepparent or relative and, in all other adoptions, the original name or initials; (2) the name of the petitioner for adoption; (3) whe…

§ 3-706. Applicability of rules of probate procedure; expeditious hearing of appeals; motion for relief from decree or order; no stay on appeal (a) The Vermont Rules of Probate Procedure shall apply to all proceedings under this title, unless a different procedure is specifically…

§ 3-707. Finality of decree Consistent with the best interests of an adoptee, a decree of adoption is a final order for purposes of appeal when it is entered. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 3-801. Report of adoption to State Registrar of Vital Records (a) Within 30 days after a decree of adoption becomes final, the clerk of the court shall prepare, send, and certify to the State Registrar of Vital Records a report of adoption on a form prescribed by the State Regi…

§ 3-802. Issuance of new, amended birth certificate (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section, upon receipt of a report of adoption prepared pursuant to subsection 3-801(a) of this title, a report of adoption prepared in accordance with the law of another…

§ 4-101. Standing to adopt minor stepchild (a) A stepparent has standing under this article to petition to adopt a minor stepchild who is the child of the stepparent’s spouse if: (1) the spouse has sole legal and physical custody of the child and the child has been in the physica…

§ 4-102. Legal consequences of adoption of stepchild (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, the legal consequences of an adoption of a stepchild by a stepparent are the same as under sections 1-103 through 1-106 of this title. (b) An adoption…

§ 4-103. Consent to adoption Unless consent is not required under section 2-402 of this title, a petition to adopt a minor stepchild may be granted only if consent to the adoption has been executed by a stepchild who has attained 14 years of age and: (1) the minor’s parents as de…

§ 4-104. Content of consent by stepparent’s spouse (a) A consent executed by a parent who is the stepparent’s spouse shall be signed or confirmed in the presence of a person specified in section 2-405 of this title, or a person authorized to take acknowledgments. (b) A consent un…

§ 4-105. Content of consent by minor’s other parent (a) A consent executed by a minor’s parent who is not the stepparent’s spouse shall be signed or confirmed in the presence of a person specified in section 2-405 of this title or a person authorized to take acknowledgments. (b) …

§ 4-106. Content of consent by other persons (a) A consent executed by the guardian of a minor stepchild or by an agency shall be in writing and signed or confirmed in the presence of the court, or in a manner the court directs, and: (1) shall state the circumstances under which …

§ 4-107. Petition to adopt A petition by a stepparent to adopt a minor stepchild shall be signed and verified by the petitioner and contain the following information or state why any of the information is not contained in the petition: (1) the information required by subdivisions…

§ 4-108. Required documents (a) After a petition to adopt a minor stepchild is filed, the following shall be filed in the proceeding: (1) any item required by subsection 3-305(a) of this title which the court determines is relevant to an adoption by a stepparent; and (2) a copy o…

§ 4-109. Notice of pendency of proceeding Within 30 days after a petition to adopt a minor stepchild is filed, the court shall serve notice of the proceeding upon: (1) the petitioner’s spouse; (2) any other person whose consent to the adoption is required under this article; (3) …

§ 4-110. Evaluation of stepparent (a) After a petition for adoption of a minor stepchild is filed, the court may order that an evaluation be made by a person qualified under section 2-202 of this title to assist the court in determining whether the proposed adoption is in the bes…

§ 4-111. Dispositional hearing: decree of adoption Sections 3-701 through 3-707 of this title apply to a proceeding for adoption of a minor stepchild by a stepparent, but the court may waive the requirements of section 3-702 of this title. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)…

§ 4-112. Visitation agreement and order (a) Upon the request of the petitioner, the petitioner’s spouse, the adoptee’s other parent, or a relative of the adoptee, the court shall review a written agreement that permits another person to visit or communicate with the minor after t…

§ 4-113. Other provisions applicable to adoption of stepchild Except as otherwise provided by this article, Article 3 of this title applies to an adoption of a minor stepchild by a stepparent. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 5-101. Who may adopt adult or emancipated minor An adult may adopt another adult or an emancipated minor pursuant to this article, but an adult may not adopt his or her spouse. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 5-102. Legal consequences of adoption The legal consequences of an adoption of an adult or emancipated minor are the same as under sections 1-103 through 1-106 of this title, but the legal consequences of adoption of an adult stepchild by an adult stepparent are the same as und…

§ 5-103. Consent by spouse (a) Consent to the adoption of an adult or emancipated minor is required only of the spouse of the prospective adoptive parent, unless they are legally separated, or the court finds that the spouse is not capable of giving consent or is withholding cons…

§ 5-104. Jurisdiction and venue (a) The Probate Division of the Superior Court has jurisdiction over a proceeding for the adoption of an adult or emancipated minor under this article if a petitioner lived in this State for at least 90 days immediately preceding the filing of a pe…

§ 5-105. Petition for adoption (a) A prospective adoptive parent and an adoptee under this article shall jointly file a petition for adoption. (b) The petition shall be signed and verified by each petitioner and state: (1) the full name, date of birth, and place and duration of r…

§ 5-106. Notice and time of hearing (a) Within 30 days after a petition for adoption is filed, the court shall serve notice of hearing the petition upon any person whose consent to the adoption is required under section 5-103 of this title, and who has not waived notice, by sendi…

§ 5-107. Dispositional hearing (a) Both petitioners shall appear in person at the hearing unless an appearance is excused for good cause shown. In the latter event an appearance may be made for either or both of them by an attorney authorized in writing to make the appearance, or…

§ 5-108. Decree of adoption (a) A decree of adoption issued under this article shall substantially conform to the relevant requirements of section 3-705 of this title and appeals from a decree, or challenges to it, are governed by section 3-707 of this title. (b) The court shall …

§ 5-109. Adoption of an adult who is incompetent If the adult who is being adopted has been found by a court to be incompetent: (1) the legal guardian shall join in the petition for adoption; (2) the court may, upon recommendation of the legal guardian: (A) waive the requirement …

§ 6-102. Records confidential (a) All records on file with the court or in the possession of an agency, the Department of Health, the registry, or other provider of professional services in connection with an adoption are confidential and may not be inspected except as provided i…

§ 6-103. Adoption registry (a) The registry shall maintain: (1) an index containing all of the following information, as applicable: (A) the adoptee’s name at birth and after adoption and date of birth; (B) the names and addresses of the adoptee’s former parents and adoptive pare…

§ 6-104. Release of nonidentifying information (a) The following persons may request nonidentifying information from confidential adoption records: (1) the adoptive parent, the legal custodian or guardian of an adoptee, an adoptee who has attained the age of 18, an emancipated ad…