Finalization is the final step for a domestic adoption. It is the process in which you obtain a final Adoption Decree and how you will get a new birth certificate that changes the child’s legal name and names you as the parents. At this point the original birth certificate is sealed.
You may either complete this process on your own (with the assistance of ADOPT) or you may and choose to hire an attorney to help complete and file the court paperwork. Please note that if you hire an attorney, the courts almost always require a court report from the agency, so you’ll be working with both ADOPT and an attorney, rather than one or the other.
Please contact our office to get a packet of forms and instructions