Adoption reversal advice

[J808]

Hello all
I found my way here on a much older thread but couldn’t get answers regarding the specific landscape in question. Maybe someone can help.
The case ( in England FYI ) is that a young toddler child was adopted into a family that was initially a lengthy foster placement ( 5 years ) all seeming fine and well and very much appearing like a happy ending. Within 2 years of official adoption the placement broke down with the child and 3 others in this same adoption needing to be rehomed in local authority care until adulthood and placed on at risk register due to allegations of neglect & physical abuse from adoptees. Much later reports unearthed that the adoptees in question ( organised by catholic children’s society ) where not a 1st choice recommendation by the local authority due to a multitude of concerns but alas it went ahead, that’s another story.
The main question here is what happens in these cases when an adoption breaks down and there is not a cancel option? As far as I am aware there is no advice available on retracting an adoption or certainly in this case there has not been an option given. What ensued for all of these rehomed children is the replacement of there birth names with adopted name that now has no connection to them as people and furthermore quite a stark reminder that follows them around. In the case of the child/now adult I enquire for, it has only been due to paying for legal change of name deed that the original birth name can be retaken and the whole history almost forgotten. However there are now many hoops and correspondence needed to cover with applying for passports etc as the birth cert has the adoption affixed to it and so the lengthy explanations needed of what must be the shortest adoption ever.
How can this now adult nullify that adoption to clear it once and for all? Is that a possibility ?
I should add the rainbow at the end is against the odds there has been an excellent relationship with the natural birth father since adoption broke down. And due to this also an even keener wish to reattribute the birth / natural status of name & family connection.
Apologies if this is too lengthy! It’s a complex and rather rare one I imagine.
Thankyou

Once a children is "freed" for adoption there is a little way for birth parents to reverse it even if it disrupts.

I maybe wrong but I also believe that once the birth parents legal status is severed then that can't be reversed at all. (I maybe wrong)

As it is once the child is 18 it's up to them what they choose to do.

Hi darkriver19886, Thankyou for reply. It’s not however the case of the feelings of birth parent that is the matter. But regarding the status of the child now adult who still has the status of adoption following them on birth cert etc. It seems there is a gap in law and procedure for these matters. And I’m sure there are more examples of similar cases? Sadly. I wonder if someone will know of an example the court saw the adoptive status as void. I’m aware this is not a legal advice forum but with so much connection to family life I thought it was a good pool of thought. Thanks

I’m not aware that adoption status can be removed once granted even by an adult wanting it to happen. I’m not in England though so maybe worth talking to family law services or possibly someone at Adoption UK might know?

An adoption order cannot be reversed in English law. It is irrevocable and the only way to nullify it is to be adopted by someone else.
Sorry but that is the legal position.

In fact ignore the above as further reading shows a couple of v rare cases where adoption orders have been set aside but only for children not adults. But it is only done if it can be proved that the legal process was flawed in and not because the adoptive parents are abusive.

difficult once 18 would be adults ALL SGO Children , and above mentioned placement's deemed too be Classed as ESTRANGED. Google estranged students will give some incite how it effects the effect on their education. Should be given leaving care status at age 15.5 ., and age 18 into education a transition social worker and care plan put in place. As for the disabled it is an horrendace jurney., many may have no capacity., classed as adults at 18.

Thanks all for responses so far. I will be interested to understand the cases of when adoption orders where set aside, I’m sure there is some stature that may guide my enquiry, as this process just does not add up in my mind and seems lawfully messy and inconclusive for the individuals in this 21st century age of identity. Later down the line I wonder where the status lays for any inheritance matters, adoption or natural. Very sad and confusing for these people to live there lives out.

Adults can change their name by deed poll, so they can change their name back to birth name legally. But not sure what you mean by the status of adoption on their birth certificate?

Any new copies of birth certificate has adoption affixed to it (in writing on certificate ) thereby needing to explain and usually also prove with name deed paperwork for why it is different with all the when’s and who’s etc. Once upon a time a passport / ID Process was the only real in depth thing to supply birth Certs for but now it seems jobs / housing / studying etc etc all require them.

I’ve never had to provide a birth certificate for work or study and I’ve done lots of both. Possibly for an initial DBS or PVG but not for work - a passport is more common.

I am so sorry this case must be very hard for the individuals concerned. I hope they have all had counselling to help adjust to the horrible things that happened and to emotionally move on.

Might counselling/further counselling allow the adults to accept that despite awful, this was what legally happened?

A change of document will not change what happened and I would worry that even if they succeeded it would not necessarily change how they felt about the past.

However, if they want a document changed, I would speak to a solicitor. It's a really unusual case.

I'd also say just because a document change hasn't been done before, it doesn't mean it cannot ever happen. Part of law is looking for previous examples, isn't it? So I might look at where similar documents are changed now.

Did the adults concerned received any compensation? Did they explore this?

Might a legal change be preferable to compensation and therefore easier for an adoption authority to offer?

Good luck. I'm glad they found their birth father and now have a relationship with him.

I don’t think it’s up to the adoption authority- adoption is a legal order so I’m guessing can only be changed by the courts, the adopting authority wouldn’t have any say in that now given the individual is no longer a child.

I wouldn’t have thought it was that unusual for an individual to change their name back to their birth name in adulthood so providing the birth certificate and the deed poll paperwork would surely suffice without him needing to explain the ins and outs of what happened?

It would really be worth speaking to specialists about this though - the only was I know of to revoke an adoption order is to apply for removal of parental rights from adopters back to the state or to another adopter but that doesn’t apply because your person is an adult and no one has parental rights for him now.

jellycatspyjamas

"I don’t think it’s up to the adoption authority- adoption is a legal order so I’m guessing can only be changed by the courts, the adopting authority wouldn’t have any say in that now given the individual is no longer a child."

Yrs, I think you are right.

OP ignore that comment of mine I think Jelly is completely correct there.

I’m sure there is some stature that may guide my enquiry, as this process just does not add up in my mind and seems lawfully messy and inconclusive for the individuals in this 21st century age of identity.

What you describe sounds a really terrible case. I can understand the issues it raises about identity; even for happy adoptees they exist so I can imagine how much worse they might be.

IANAL and I think no-one without specific family law expertise can help you, but I think it is worth understanding that the law is not usually designed to make everything right in every edge case.

The subject of your OP has been failed by one set of parents and then failed by their adoptive parents. This is still the case whatever the paperwork says. I think their energy would be better spent processing that sad history and making the present successful, rather than tilting at legal windmills.

I know of one case where the adoption was reversed when the adoptee was still a child - I don't know of any where the adoptee was an adult. You need legal advice from a solicitor who has expertise and experience in this area of law - ie a niche area of family law.

I know adoptees who had similar experiences, and many write about similar feelings on forums. It is complicated. The law can change obviously - but it would be quite a journey and again you need specialist advice.

Someone has mentioned compensation from the LA, and this may be an option but it doesn't achieve what you have asked for. As I understand it you have to show psychological damage arising from actions of the LA, and to go through the process is likely to be triggering and traumatic in itself - and without good legal advice the settlement can be quite poor apparently - but again you need specialist advice.

A pp has said time would be better spent processing and coming to terms with the past, but there can be continuing issues - eg to do with grand children - grand parents don't have rights as such but can apply to have contact, and so on and so forth, more complicated than in your average nc situation possibly.

Just to add that my language wasn't very clear there - the case I mentioned wasn't a reversal, it was a new order which effectively made members of the birth family the legal parents instead of the original adopters. The only way of changing the legal status of an adoption is the court making a new order. As I understand it, it was important for the child in that case, but the current situation is that the court would not make a new order for an adult, to "reverse", just as you cannot adopt an adult. I might be wrong about this though, so it is worth getting proper advice - and never say never and all that!

Thankyou all for writing such comprehensive replies. I suppose it is as I expected, and the finer detail will be in advice from specialised legal advice. I was the last acting respite carer for the individual and aiming to help in the coming of age transition. Past 18 now. Where the care of local authority has ceased. Dropped in the ocean more or less. It’s in facing passport applications and housing this has come up and like a hound with a scent I am endeavouring to research as there seems a real loss with this case, and any like it. I have no doubt there should be grounds for investigation into the diligence or lack of regarding this unfortunate adoption circumstances but I am not as advisor to seek compensation. That is another matter. Has there ever been examples of people successfully claiming damages for unfit adoptions ? I wonder. Indeed some therapy is already under way and needed, again another matter. For now I’m sitting more on it, but Thankyou for these replies.

Perhaps to add some more of the picture: As I previously mentioned the adoption broke down within afew years of being written, the person was by this time 12 years old and entered into local authority care for the remainder of the years until 18 ( various foster homes, children’s homes and respite carers, a sadly high amount of changes, yearly or more ) but the clincher here is from the point of being put into LA care the person was no longer addressed as adoptive name but by birth name, all reports and social worker correspondence etc addressed in the birth name, of which the person naturally assumes this reestablished name for some 6 years until 18, only to recently applying for passport with documents birth cert etc that passport is refused as the birth name is illegal, and with us having to go along to a solicitor on the same day to have change name deed executed to then go back to passport office for a successful application ( happy to say he did make his 1st ever holiday abroad !) phew. The only thing I could guess from this is despite it not being the “legal name” the social workers and carers after adoption allowed him to use the name he chose ( as in birth name ) and addressed accordingly thereafter. As I said earlier... it’s all just very messy to my mind.

You might want to google Lemn Sissay. He won damages from Wigan LA about 2 years ago. He was never legally adopted but was with the same FC from birth to 12 when they rejected him and he spent the rest of hid childhood in homes

Here’s the case law

www.transparencyproject.org.uk/can-an-adoption-order-be-undone/

@Ginsodden Thankyou for further reading, I will study it closer.

@Ted27 This is a very inspiring and interesting reference on all accounts, I’m very grateful you have uncovered this ! As it leans into my question but secondly a great example of creative fortitude which the individual I am helping will no doubt take great example of. I have not been able to find many publicly available/notable success stories of people in care. Thankyou.

I had originally found this forum for the original reason of..Um motherhood questions ! since becoming a newly one myself this year. Also perhaps making my sensitivities ( and emotions ) more astute to pour into this query. I’m glad I came on to ask. Thanks to all.

Meanwhile I’ll also be elsewhere attempting to figure out best baby sleep advice

J