When Should Foster Parents Hire an Adoption Attorney in Indiana? Earlier Than You Think.

By: Grant Kirsh

Most foster parents assume they should hire an adoption attorney at the end of the process, once DCS says it is time to finalize or when termination of parental rights (TPR) is granted. After personally handling nearly 3,000 foster care adoptions across Indiana, I can tell you that waiting until the end is a mistake. The right time is much earlier, and in some cases the timing makes all the difference in whether your child stays with you.

At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., a family-run firm serving Indiana for nearly 50 years, here is how we think about timing, in courts across Marion, Lake, Allen, Hamilton, Tippecanoe, St. Joseph, Hendricks, Elkhart, Johnson, Delaware, Vanderburgh, Porter, Madison, Vigo, and Monroe Counties.

The Signal to Call: The Permanency Plan Shifts

The moment the child’s permanency plan changes to adoption, or a concurrent plan of reunification and adoption is established, you should at least have a consultation with an experienced attorney. From that point forward, decisions are being made that shape your adoption: TPR filing, subsidy groundwork, and placement questions. An attorney who is watching the case can keep you informed, communicate with DCS, and make sure nothing slips. The attorney can also identify opportunities to help expedite the case through to adoption finalization.

If you are unsure where the plan stands, ask your family case manager, and then call us either way. A short conversation costs nothing and will tell you exactly where things sit.

The 12-Month Protection: Why Early Filing Matters So Much

Here is the rule every Indiana foster parent should know by heart. If you have had placement of the child for more than 12 months and an adoption petition on file, the child cannot be moved until your adoption petition is heard first. This can be found in Indiana Code 31-34-23-6(g). This is a very important statute to make sure your long term placement is not unjustly removed from your care.

Think about what that means. Relatives sometimes appear late in a case, even after years of your care, and Indiana gives kinship placements real priority. Remember that kinship in Indiana is broad, including neighbors, teachers, and family friends, not just blood relatives. Without a filed petition, a late relative can result in the child being moved out of your home while the question gets sorted out. With more than 12 months of placement and a petition on file, the child stays with you until a judge hears your petition to adopt under Indiana Code 31-19-2. That is an enormous difference, and it only exists if the petition was actually filed.

Under Indiana Code 31-19-2-2, the petition must be filed by an attorney of record. This is not paperwork you can do yourself. File as soon as it is properly possible. We will tell you when that moment arrives in your case.

What an Attorney Does During the Middle of the Case

Between the permanency change and finalization, we monitor the TPR proceedings to the best of our ability (keep in mind we are not attorneys of record on the TPR case, so we do not have direct access to that case) and explain what a contested TPR does and does not mean, and it does not mean a contested adoption. We start the subsidy groundwork early, because agreements must be negotiated before finalization, and therapeutic plus per diems have to be pursued deliberately. We prepare and file your petition at the right moment. And we keep you informed, so the case stops feeling like a black box.

The Cost Question

Remember that nearly every child adopted from Indiana foster care qualifies for a non-recurring adoption expense of $2,000 toward attorney fees. The system itself helps pay for the attorney who protects your adoption.

If your foster child’s case is moving toward adoption anywhere in Indiana, do not wait for someone to tell you it is time. Call us now and let us look at where things stand.

Call us at 317-575-5555. Visit us at DCSAdoptions.com.

For the full journey, read our guide: From Foster Parent to Adoptive Parent in Indiana.

About the Author
Grant Kirsh is a second-generation adoption attorney and owner of Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., a family law firm in Indianapolis, Indiana that has been serving Indiana families since 1981. Grant graduated from Indiana University McKinney School of Law in 2013 and has personally handled nearly 3,000 foster care adoptions and his law firm has handled over 5,000 private newborn adoptions. He practices all forms of domestic adoption, with a deep personal commitment to expectant mothers considering adoption in Indiana and Indiana’s foster care system and the families and children it serves.