Selecting an Attorney to Represent You

Tennessee Foster Parents and the DCS

When foster parents adopt foster children from DCS, or an agency contracting from DCS, the foster parent is instructed to select an attorney around the time the child becomes free for adoption. So, congratulations if that is where you are in the process.  It won’t be long now. 

The attorney selected will represent the foster parents and should have a confidential relationship with the foster parents. For an adoption that you feel is solid and for a process that you direct, you need a lawyer that cares more about what you think and need than they do what DCS wants. You need a lawyer who will check DCS’ work to be sure the paperwork is solid. You need a lawyer who will move as quickly or as slowly as you want them to move. Some lawyers get most of their cases through referrals from DCS. Who do you think they will listen to if you and DCS get “crossways”? 

Though Dawn loves working with foster families, because she handles all types of adoption cases, DCS is not a significant source of client referrals. 

If Dawn is your attorney, your Adoption Day will not unfold in a great herd of adoptive families that you don’t know. If you want to be surrounded on that day, it will be with your own family and friends and Dawn will be pleased to take pictures.  

Dawn will advocate for and be directed by you, individually, and you can rest in the knowledge that your child is with you permanently because Dawn took the time to ensure that your finalization is solid. 

LawTalks

 

Foster Parents – Finally Adoption –

Attorney, Paperwork, Gotcha Day!

 

Pretty cheerful curly-haired girl smiling and spreading her arms and her parents sitting on the couch in the background

Fees When Foster Parents Hire Dawn

DCS will pay for Dawn to represent you in the adoption of a DCS foster child with DCS’ blessing.

But they will not pay for you to consult an attorney if the child is not free for adoption or if you are not the designated adoptive parents. If you are in the squeaky wheel phase, and your foster child is not on the verge of being free for adoption, you would hire Dawn to represent you for her usual hourly rate. When your case becomes an ordinary foster parent adoption with the blessing of DCS, Dawn can shift your case to state payment for “the fun part.” As you might expect, TN DCS won’t pay Dawn to question their approach.

If your foster child is free or almost free for adoption, and you are ready for an attorney to finalize the adoption, all you need to do is contact Dawn’s office and tell them you are ready to begin. 

Here’s some general information for people at that point in the process:

  • You get to pick your lawyer and the lawyer represents and reports to you. 
  • If your foster child is a special needs child as defined by DCS, and most foster children are, then the Department will pay for your lawyer to finalize the adoption, generally a flat rate fee of $1000 per child plus court costs and the birth certificate fee.

  A Few Extras 

When Dawn is paid by the state to represent you in an adoption, she also offers a few extras that you may not get with other attorneys:

  • If you want, Dawn will conduct a basic review of your adoption assistance contract and discuss with you what it means. 
  • Dawn will conduct a general review of the termination of parental rights documents that DCS files with the adoption court to prove that your child is free to be adopted. Serious errors in these documents can be grounds to set aside your adoption even years after it is finalized. Some lawyers for adoptive parents do not even look at these documents. Others don’t have the expertise to identify a serious error if one exists. The majority of the time, the DCS documents are solid. Serious errors are rare. The security of your child warrants selecting a lawyer who will quickly and professionally check their work.  Dawn will do what she would do if she were the adoptive parent. She will look at the documents and if there is a concern, she will call you about what you want to do next.
  • Dawn offers an hour of professional time, at no charge to you, pre-adoption, and at your request to advise you on any adoption related legal matters. Foster families use this time to talk with Dawn about topics like, post adoption contact agreements, including PACAs for DCS adoptions, the viability of pending appeals, use of new names at school, access to the child’s pre-placement background or health information, adoption assistance a.k.a., adoption subsidy, etc. 

For some foster families that expect the child to be free for adoption soon, with the Department’s blessing, the one hour free consultation is sufficient to address their pre-adoption concerns.  If the Department does not support the adoption or that issue is undecided, Dawn represents foster parents on an hourly basis.

  • A rubber duck at finalization that says, “Love and Congratulations from Dawn.” (and a hug too, if you are open to it and this pandemic will pass) While Dawn is on the legal security team, and takes that job very seriously, she never misses the magic of the heroic and exceptional people taking this giant life step together that she is allowed to witness with each adoption finalization.

If your child is almost available for adoption and you want to reach out to Dawn, you can, but don’t have to wait until the DCS adoption specialist tells you to get a lawyer.

Dawn Coppock, Adoption Attorney
Multiethnic parents talking about adoption with their counselor.

Foster Parents Role in the Adoption Process

You don’t have to get down in the weeds of who does what to get your adoption finalized. Dawn does that. But some foster parents want to know what is going on behind the scenes, so here is it all broken down for you.

What is your role as a foster parent once the adoption process starts?

  • Loving and caring for the child as if he or she were born to you.
  • Selecting an attorney.
  • Providing accurate case information to the attorney and advising the attorney about your preferred goals and timelines.
  • Signing the adoption petition before a notary.
  • Ensuring that the adoption assistance, if any, is adequate and that the contract is signed before the adoption (with the advice of the attorney if desired).
  • Preparing the child for adoption and the finalization hearing. If the child is 14 years old or older, he or she will need to sign a consent, privately with the judge.
  • Attend the finalization hearing. This is the fun part!
Adorable family, lesbian couple with two small children enjoy time together in the great outdoors

The Agency’s Role in the Finalization Process

What is DCS’ or a contract agency’s role in the adoption process?

  • Identify the birth parents.
  • Secure the termination of the birth parents’ parental rights.
  • Obtain guardianship of the child.
  • Select prospective adoptive parents and present them with information about the child.
  • Complete and file with the court the home study and supervisory reports.
  • Prepare the adoption assistance request and contract (if the child is eligible). Negotiate any disagreements regarding the terms of the contract.
  • Prepare court reports and submit appropriate documents to court.
  • Consent to adoption.
  • Prepare the birth certificate application.

Dawn is Ready to Help with Your Tennessee DCS Adoption Case

If you are a Tennessee foster family beginning the adoption process or are otherwise in need of Tennessee legal services related to adoption: please contact Angela Cameron, paralegal, for information on scheduling an appointment or a telephone consultation.