Adoption Law

Get advice about adoption law, and the adoption process in the UK, from specialist adoption and child law solicitors.

Adoption and special guardianship solicitors: Expert legal advice

Our specialist family lawyers can help with a number of adoption circumstances, including:

Private family adoption – a child is adopted by a step-parent, granting the step-parent legal parental responsibility and the status as a parent of that child
Kinship Adoption – a member of their family adopts a child.

Relative or stepchild adoption

Many people ask for advice about adopting a child that is already a part of the extended family, or is the child of a new partner. There are processes to follow that include the local authority to consider whether an adoption should proceed. There are also issues of consent required if any other parent is still alive.

We can advise you regarding the implications of this step which often gives rise to other concerns. It’s particularly difficult where there is an absent parent who has left the home, and even more so if they are still active in the child’s life – for example weekend visits. The adoption process has the effect of extinguishing the rights as a parent of the absent parent and this, of course, can make the situation very challenging. As with all child-related issues, the overriding concern is for the child’s best interests.

The family team is very experienced and client focused and able to offer specialist advice in all areas of family law. It approaches cases pragmatically and considers all aspects of non court dispute resolution as a method to assist its clients to find resolution to issues relating to finance and child arrangements.

Legal 500 UK, 2025

Legal alternatives to adoption:

If an adoption is not appropriate, we can advise on other options such as:

Step-parent parental responsibility agreement: This is where a step-parent can obtain parental responsibility but does not legally replace another parent. There are legal requirements that must be met for this to be applicable.
Special Guardianship Order: This application ‘stops short of an adoption’ where certain relations can become legal carers for a child. Again certain conditions must be met for these to take place so we can talk through the options.

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All legal services provided by Tees are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Tees is a trading name of Stanley Tee LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA Number 464615) and is registered in England and Wales number OC327874.

All financial services provided by Tees are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Tees and Tees Wealth are trading names of Tees Financial Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales number 4342506. Registered office address Tees House, 95 London Road, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 3GW.

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