November is both National Native American Heritage Month and National Adoption Month. Tomorrow, November 9, the U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a case that has implications related to both, Brackeen v. Haaland, which concerns the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA), 25 U.S.C. §§ 1901-1963. The ICWA governs the removal, placement, and return of Native American children in child welfare proceedings for both foster care and adoption. At issue on appeal is the constitutionality of the act’s child placement preferences, as set forth in 25 U.S.C. § 1915. This blog sets forth the ICWA’s child placement preferences and a brief procedural history of the case.
Read morePress Release: Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library Celebrates National Adoption Month
To mark the beginning of National Adoption Month the Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library, as part of the Harris County Attorney’s Office, is hosting a variety of events to empower families and support children in foster care.
Read moreCelebrate National Adoption Month in November with the Law Library
November is National Adoption Month, and the Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library is celebrating with four special events, including a free Texas CLE with ethics credit, a family information session for people going through the adoption process, a traveling exhibit of photos of children available for adoption, and a resource drive for children in foster care.
Read moreNational Adoption Day: Harris County Family District Courts Celebrate Forever Families
National Adoption Day is an annual event, celebrated since 2000, that has placed more than 75,000 children living in foster care with forever families. In 400 cities across the nation, policymakers, advocates, and key players in the family court system have collaborated to plan events in furtherance of the event’s shared goals: calling attention to the large number of children in the foster care system, reducing the backlog of adoption cases in family courts across the nation, and celebrating the successful adoption of foster children by loving parents. On November 19, 2021, four Harris County Judges will host private adoptions as well as adoptions with the Department of Famliy and Protective Services. Events start at 9:00 am.
Read moreLatest & Greatest - The Adoption Law Handbook: Practice, Resources, and Forms for Family Law Professionals
Adoption can be a tricky process and generally requires the assistance of an experienced adoption professional to ensure that the adoption is done correctly within the proper jurisdiction and in conformance with applicable state laws. To shed some light on this often complicated process, attorney and author Jennifer Fairfax has prepared The Adoption Law Handbook: Practice, Resources, and Forms for Family Law Professionals.
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