What is Open Adoption?

Openness in adoption refers to the amount of contact and the type of information which birth mothers and adoptive parents are comfortable sharing. A completely open adoption might include a cooperative parenting arrangement, in which the birth mother and the adoptive parents raise the child together. A completely confidential adoption would involve a situation in which neither the birth nor the adoptive parents knew anything about each other.

As a practical matter, most adoptions are neither completely open nor completely confidential. In our 30 plus years of experience, we, at Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C. have generally found that prospective birth mothers would like to first read about prospective adoptive parents, talk with them by telephone, and, in many cases, meet the prospective adoptive parents in person, all of which is on a first name, non-identifying basis. Some prospective birth mothers want the prospective adoptive parents to visit with them a few times during the pregnancy and, perhaps, even attend one or more prenatal appointments with the prospective birth mother.

After the baby is born, most of the birth mothers we work with want to receive letters and photographs from the adoptive families to let them know how the baby is doing. Others would rather not have that information.

At Kirsh & Kirsh, we tailor an update arrangement that suits your needs. All of our clients are happy to provide letters and photographs letting her know how her child is getting along. For those women, who prefer not to receive the updates, we have the updates prepared and hold them in our file, in case she later changes her mind about receiving them.