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[viet_mom]

Is anyone familiar with the legal aspects of the Ritchie/ adoption effort? I know there are tons of arguments going on but I haven't seen much about the legal aspects. I assume the couple weren't going to go through British law via Ritchie to adopt the child (UK law is tough for international adoptions) and that Madonna is going to do it in the U.S. (She recently said she was going to California to "complete" the process).

It would be great if there is an immigration lawyer on this board. Because I just don't see how the adoption could be processed under U.S. law. Usually the adoptive parents get a homestudy and file for permission with the U.S. government to adopt internationally before they do it. But even if they wait until after..... to complete the adoption for U.S. purposes, they have to get a visa for the child. To do that, they must petition the US government for a determination that the child fits the definition of "orphan". That's a complicated definition and although it recognizes "relinquishment" by a birth parent, it seems there is a decent chance the U.S. government could deny the visa. Tons of reasons - the father didn't relinquish parental rights when he placed the child in the orphanage temporarily, he only relinquished when he was solicited to do so for an adoption (highly unusual), the father's recent statements that he didn't know the papers he signed meant he was severing his parental rights completely, the level of information he was told about the adoptive parents and his inability to read and write. At best, the US would be conducting long investigations. This happens sometimes with Viet Nam adoptions to make sure the relinquishment was proper (China mostly has abandoned infants that can't be investigated).

If the child is denied a visa because he doesn't fit the definition of orphan, I don't think the Ritchies could live in the U.S. with him (I don't know if they can bring him into the U.S. periodically under other grounds. ? ) Yet, I don't think they can live indefinitely in the UK with him (apparently, the child isn't even allowed to be there now). I think if they find some place to live for 2 years with the child, they can get a US visa for the child on grounds other than the "orphan" definition. But that would not work if the child's biological father revokes his prior relinquishment. And also, I think the 2 year time frame would begin to run only after the "final" adoption happened in Malawi (right now, it is "interim" for 18 months).

What a big mess. Didn't Madonna have lawyers? I would love to hear input on the US immigration aspects. (On a more personal note, I cannot believe that, of all the children Madonna could have chosen to adopt, she picked one whose parent hadn't already relinquished parental rights and was still visiting the child at the child center, hoping to parent him! And the father's desparate position is just heartbreaking.)