How long will my adoption take?

The length of time that’s your adoption case will take will depend on many factors including the type of adoption (DSS adoption, grandparent adoption, stepparent adoption, private adoption agency adoption).

What is the Starting Point of the Adoption?

Another factor that impacts the time of an adoption is where we are starting. For example, are you matched with a birth mother yet through a private search or through the use of an adoption agency? If you are adopting through DSS, has the child been placed with you for adoption purposes and have the parents rights been terminated? Have the birth parents filed an appeal?

Before an adoption can be finalized, terminating the birth-parents’ rights is the first step before the child can be adopted. This can be a lengthy, highly-litigated process or it could be something that happens quickly because the parents agree to sign a voluntary consent to adopt. A contested trial could take several months to be scheduled and could last a few minutes up to several days for trial. Unfortunately, this uncertainty prevents us from being able to forecast exactly how long an adoption may take.

What if the adoption is not contested or an approved DSS Adoption

An uncontested step-parent adoption or grandparent adoption could be completed in as little as 90 days or so, while the process from start to finish through an independent or agency search could take upwards of two years.If you would like to discuss your options for adoption in South Carolina, please call Tripp at 864-558-0512 or use the form below to schedule a consultation to discuss your case. The consultation is complimentary and confidential.[contact-form-7 id="357" title="Contact form 1"]