Closed Adoption

Couples have been adopting children for as long as anyone can remember. In the time of the Romans, an individual without an heir was able to do an adult adoption of an individual that he wanted to include in his family and dynasty. A prominent adult adoption in Rome was August Caesar.

Now, we have a variety of adoption options. One of the options that has become less popular with the rise of the open adoption or semi-open adoption is the closed adoption. Closed adoption, which is also frequently called “confidential” adoption or “secret” adoption, is an adoption in which an infant is adopted from another family and the record of the birth parents is kept sealed. In many cases, the birth father is not even recorded at all, even on the original birth certificate.

This option is less easy for individuals who have adopted an older child. It is harder to keep natural or birth parents secret from a child that already knows his or her birth parents. As a result, these adoptions cannot be made closed or secret.

Closed adoptions are the oldest form of adoption in the United States and were traditionally the most popular type. This type of adoption still exists today but its popularity is rapidly declining. In an age of information, people want to know and be able to tell their adopted children about their birth parents or pass on medical history information so the child can be prepared later on.

Because the adoption records were sealed, the adoptee and the natural parents were effectively barred from finding or even learning anything about each other. This was particularly true in the days before the internet took over.

Contact a San Jose Family Lawyer

For more information on closed adoptions and other adoption issues in California, contact the San Jose family lawyers of the Law Office of Daniel Jensen at 408-296-4100.