Private Attorney Adoptions
The distinctions between private (attorney assisted) adoptions and agency adoptions have lessened in recent years. In times past, agencies often had specific requirements for prospective adoptive parents including age, number of other children, length of marriage, etc. In particular, agencies often required that one parent commit to remain at home following an adoptive placement. Private adoption was an alternative to those who did not fall within all of these criteria, or who wanted to take a more aggressive role in locating a prospective birth parent who might wish to place a child with them. From a birth parent's perspective, private adoption was sometimes viewed as a viable alternative because they wanted to feel more in control of obtaining knowledge regarding the adoptive home and the selection process.
Attorneys working in private practice provide access to most of the same services as adoption agencies. While attorneys cannot provide counseling, most attorneys skilled in the area work closely with social workers, and sometimes adoption agencies, in providing counseling support for birth parents and adoptive parents.
Perhaps the biggest distinction between private (attorney facilitated) and agency adoptions is cost. Agencies generally amortize their costs and have a flat fee arrangement with their clients, although non-profit agencies may utilize some form of sliding scale approach, depending upon income levels. Thus, if a birth mother places a child post-birth with an adoption agency, the agency may be able to charge its normal fee for the placement of that child without having incurred any significant expense in the process. On the other hand, the adoptive home incurs no liability in the case where the placement of a child may have generated debt to the agency that far exceeds the amount of the fee.
In the private sector, the cost of the adoption depends upon the circumstances of the particular adoptive placement. Thus, if a birth mother has her own insurance or has no medical needs, the adoptive couple will not have that expense. Where a birth mother has no insurance, the adoptive couple may need to entirely assume the risk for medical expenses, with no guarantee that the birth mother will ultimately place her child post-birth. Thus, while it is possible for a private adoption to be economically far less expensive than an agency placement, the reverse may also be true.
Today, many agencies and attorneys often act in concert to affect a positive adoption experience.