Checklists, plain-language guides and the organisations we point people to.

Glossary

Adoption and family law, translated.

The terms that appear in your paperwork, in ordinary English.

Adoption assistance / subsidy

Ongoing financial and medical support for a child adopted from foster care who meets the special-needs criteria of California’s Adoption Assistance Program (Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 16115 and following). Agreed before finalisation.

Consent to adoption

The formal document by which a legal parent agrees to the adoption. Its timing, witnessing and revocability are set by statute.

Decree of adoption

The court order that creates the legal parent-child relationship. The end point of the process.

De facto parent

Someone who has functioned as a child’s parent. In California, a person the juvenile court recognises as a de facto parent may take part in the child’s dependency proceedings (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 5.534).

Diligent search

The documented effort to locate a parent whose whereabouts are unknown, required before a court will permit notice by publication.

Guardian ad litem (GAL)

A person appointed by the court to represent the child’s best interests in the proceeding.

Home study

The written assessment of a prospective adoptive home, covering background checks, finances, health, references and interviews.

ICPC

Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children. Governs placements across state lines; both states must approve before the child travels.

ICWA

Indian Child Welfare Act. Federal law imposing extra notice, placement preference and evidentiary requirements where a child is a member of, or eligible for membership in, a federally recognised tribe.

Open adoption

An adoption in which some contact or information exchange continues between the birth family and the adoptive family.

Post-adoption contact agreement (PACA)

A written agreement about ongoing contact after adoption. In California it is enforceable only if the court approved it (Cal. Fam. Code § 8616.5).

Putative father

A man who may be the biological father but is not a legal or presumed father. California has no putative father registry; his rights turn on notice and on his commitment to parenting (Cal. Fam. Code § 7664; Adoption of Kelsey S. (1992)).

Readoption

A domestic adoption completed after an adoption granted abroad, to secure a state birth certificate and clear domestic recognition.

Relinquishment / surrender

A parent’s voluntary release of parental rights, usually to an agency.

Termination of parental rights (TPR)

A court order ending a parent’s legal rights and duties. Required before adoption where consent is not given.

UCCJEA

Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. Determines which state’s courts decide a custody dispute.