Gay Man in Florida Anxiously Waiting for Ruling on Adoption

An article in the Orlando Sentinel covers the lives and times of a gay man, Martin Gill, and his partner as they anxiously wait for the US Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit to issue its ruling on Florida’s ban on adoption by gay individuals.

Florida has a long-standing ban on gay adoption, passed in 1977 by the legislature. Until now, no one has gotten this close to overturning it. The Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge ruled in November 2008 that the law was unconstitutional. The state appealed the decision, and now, the family waits.

The facts are compelling: Gill and his partner are foster parents to two children, now ages 4 and 9. DCF workers testified at the trial that Gill and his partner were exemplary foster parents and, if not for the ban, they would have recommended them for adoption. The boys have bonded with the two men, calling them “Daddy” and “Poppy.” Even more heartbreaking, the Attorney General has stated that if the appeals court upholds the ban, the children will be removed from the home and placed with another foster family where they would be eligible for adoption.

It’s easy for those of us in California to forget how much harder it is for same-sex couples and individuals to adopt or have children in other parts of the country. Families considering adoption, same sex or otherwise, should always consult with an attorney as part of the process to familiarize themselves with the laws of their state, as well as others. Many times adoptions occur with parties residing in different states. If you are interested in adoption a child but do not reside in California, we may still be able to help you. Call us today, or visit our website to learn more about our services!

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Announcing Birth Parent Outreach Program!

Family Formation Law Offices is excited to announce the launch of its new and improved birth parent outreach program. This program is designed to help would be adoptive parents find a child to adopt by reaching out to women who are pregnant and wish to place their child for adoption. You can learn more by calling our office at (925) 945-1880, or emailing us!

The basics of the program are flat fee legal and outreach work for a period of time, chosen by you, the adoptive parent (1 year, 18 months, or 2 years). Family Formation Law Offices will place advertisements for adoptive parents in places that will reach birth parents, including the internet. We will also reach out to other groups and individuals that may have contact with birth parents, to let them know that we have a pool of families for birth parents to choose from when selecting a home in which to place their child.

Family Formation Law Offices not only locates birth parents, but screens them using both a legal and a mental health approach, building on Diane Michelsen’s years of experience as an adoption social worker, as well as an adoption attorney.

For birth parents, we encourage you to contact our offices to join our list of birth parents looking for a placement. You may qualify for legal representation by our office at no cost to you.

We are very excited about this new program, and hope that you will contact us to learn more about adoption, whether you are a would-be adoptive parent, or a birth parent looking for a family for your child.

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Guest Blog: Adoptive and Intended Parent Nursing – It IS Possible!

Contrary to popular belief it is NOT necessary for a woman to have been pregnant to breastfeed.
During pregnancy a woman’s body produces increasing amounts of progesterone, estrogen (via the placenta), and prolactin (via the pituitary). These hormones prepare the woman’s breasts for breastfeeding. Once her baby is delivered, progesterone and estrogen levels drop and prolactin levels increase and this results in the woman’s milk production or lactation.

A woman who is planning to build her family through adoption or via surrogacy can follow certain guidelines which are designed to mimic what happens during pregnancy and after the birth of a baby. The result for a woman who follows these guidelines is milk production or “induced” lactation. She will actually be inducing lactation and her breasts will begin to produce milk!

Once the milk supply is established, milk continues to be produced on a “supply and demand” basis. Milk will continue to be produced as the baby continues to ‘demand’ milk. The more often and the more efficiently the baby withdraws milk from the his/her mother’s breast, the more milk will be produced by the breast. As the baby suckles at the breast, a signal is sent to the brain from the breast to release oxytocin which initiates the milk ejection reflex (MER) and causes the milk to flow. The release of oxytocin and the emptying of milk from the breast causes the breast to produce more milk. And, so the circular feeding pattern and production of milk continues. Baby eats, breasts empty, breasts fill, baby eats……

Studies have shown that the breastmilk of a mother who has induced lactation is compared to that of a birth mother’s breastmilk at 10 days postpartum.

There are two issues in nursing an adopted or intended baby. One is getting a baby to breastfeed. The other is producing breastmilk. It is important for mothers to set their expectations at a reasonable level. Since there is more to breastfeeding than breastmilk, many mothers are happy to be able to breastfeed without expecting to produce all the milk the baby will need. It is the special relationship, the special closeness, and the biological attachment of breastfeeding that many mothers are looking for. As one adopting mother said, “I want to breastfeed. If my baby also gets breastmilk then that’s icing on the cake!”

Adoptive and intended mothers CAN breastfeed. The International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) of Virtual Breastfeeding Help provide the “induced lactation” guidelines, technical assistance and support necessary to turn your dreams into reality!

Please visit their website to make an appointment TODAY: www.VirtualBreastfeedingHelp.com

By: Laurie Haessly, MA, RD, IBCLC

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Building Your Family – Embryo Donation

Embryo donation is the newest method of assisted reproduction and one we will be hearing about much more in upcoming times as people become familiar with the idea. Embryos are plentiful and donation is being popularized by the U.S. government. Typically donors of embryos are those men and/or women who have completed their families via IVF and who have remaining frozen embryos. Rather than donating these for scientific research or letting them be destroyed, they seek special families (defined here as single, married, gay or straight), who want children and who will receive these embryos and gestate them to term.

For the recipient family, this may be the family building solution they are seeking. The family does not have to spend the time and money and agony of creating embryos. Full medical information on the gamete donors is available; the recipients can negotiate the donation contract, which when executed will be upheld (Buzzanca). The Recipient will have control over the prenatal environment, and with very rare exceptions, the resulting child(ren) will not be the subject of a court battle. As in adoption*, the children born will not be genetically connected to the intended parents, but they will be full siblings of the donors’ children. The risk here is not that the birth parents will change their mind, but that the embryos will not implant well.

As in other IVF procedures, clinical implantation of the embryos is necessary and the recipient must be medically prepared for receipt. And as in other IVF procedures where there is donor genetic material, there must be a written consent of all the parties. (CA Penal Code 367G). Here, this would be in the form of an embryo donor contract or agreement. The embryo donor contract spells out the details and intentions of the parties. Contract provisions provide that the recipients are the intended parents and they will be deemed the parents of the child(ren) born of this donation without regard to physical condition or number. There is usually a recitation that the donor wishes no parental relationship or responsibility with respect to any child born of the donated embryo and has no responsibility if the embryos are blighted or don’t thaw well. Often there is a visitation provision which underscores the genetic ties between the children of both families.

Section 367G of the CA Penal Code raises the question that if the embryos were composed of donated gametes, does the original donor have to sign a consent to the donation of those embryos? Experts are divided. If the original consent to donation is a blanket consent, it may not be legally necessary. However, the better practice, both from a legal and a social responsibility standpoint, is to have the original donor sign a document indicating her/his knowledge of the (redonation) embryo recipient.

Again, because genetic material is not usually sold, the money that changes hands is very limited. Sometimes the recipients/intended parents will help defray the cost of storage fees. Medical costs of the embryo creation are borne by the donors; costs of the implant procedures are borne by the intended parents. If a search organization or an embryo donation program is utilized, these costs are also borne by the intended parents.

Family Formation Law Offices offers cost-effective, flat fee reviews of contracts in embryo donations. Both the donor parents and the recipient parents need to be represented by counsel. We offer a free 15 minute phone consultation to discuss your legal needs in an embryo donation agreement. Call or email us today to arrange your appointment.

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*One embryo donation program, Snowflake, located in Orange County, CA arranges the embryo donations as though they were adoptions. The recipient family must undergo a homestudy with all the rigors of interviews, references, fingerprint and medical clearances with an educational component of raising a child not biologically related. The donating family must receive counseling and fill out complete medical histories on the embryos. If the parties wish ongoing contact agreements, these are worked out with the parties by the agency. Then papers are signed.

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