BASICS OF ADOPTION LAW IN ALABAMA:
Location and Timing of Filing
WHERE IS A PETITION FOR ADOPTION FILED?
A petition for adoption may be filed in the probate court of any of the following counties: where the minor resides; where the petitioner resides or is in military service; or where the office of the agency or institution having guardianship or custody of the minor is located.
WHEN IS A PETITION FOR AN UNRELATED PRIVATE ADOPTION FILED?
The adoption petition must be filed within 30 days after the minor is placed with the prospective adoptive parent(s) for adoption. If the person seeking the adoption is a stepparent or relative of the adoptee, then the adoptee must reside with the petitioner for a year before such petition is filed. If the child has not lived with the stepparent or relative for a year, the adoption will proceed in the same manner as all other adoptions unless the court waives the residence requirements for good cause. [1]
Article by Corey Colbert
Photo by libertygrace0.
Corey Colbert is a third-year law student at Faulkner University’s Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. Corey is a member of Fannin Road Baptist Church, where he is currently serving as the temporary Music Director. Corey lives in Montgomery.
[1]Information provided by the Alabama Law Institute for Alabama Probate Judges’ Association and Reese McKinney, Jr. Judge of Probate Montgomery County, Alabama.
