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We are the parents of 6 kids. We adopted 2 of our foster children who are bio sibs. The adoption was final Feb 2007. Parental rights were terminated. We just received a certified letter from bio parents, handwritten, but filed with the court. It states they are seeking to have their parental rights reinstated and they knows the kids have been legally adopted out. It then states they are seeking fitness for general reasons. She is not pregnant, she had a tubal. What the heck!!??? The hearing is at the end of this month. What are they doing? We had to get a restraining order that supposedly is still in effect. They have now moved very close to where we live....we moved since the adoption and they obviously know where. Their other 2 kids were adopted by bio mom's parents and they received the same certified letter. Once terminated the state doesn't reverse that do they? Any opinions or advice greatly apprectiated. I have called the States Attorney office hopefully they will call back. The State didn't file this but it says the "State of Il versus" and then all four kids names. They said that is just how they are told to file it. I guess I am freaking out that she will try to approach my kids (ages 6/8) 8 yr old has RAD disinhibited type already and is a tad unstable.
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I adopted in Illinios years ago. It would seem that if your case was conducted in a legal manner and all "i's were dotted" then there is no way they could "reinstate" their parental rights". They gave those rights away when they signed the forms. I'm not a lawyer, but it would appear that they have the right to petition the courts, but it doesn't mean that they will get what they want. I would call the lawyer that helped you with the adoption to get their opinioin, as well as wait to hear from the State's Attorney.The adoption could be reverse if the process was not followed to the letter of the law. The "Baby Richard" case was the case that made adoption proceedings stronger. Sounds like a nightmare for you and your family.
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I'm in California so our process might be different, but I recently attended an orientation for fost/adopt and they explained the legal process of adopting from foster care. In California, there is a 60 days appeals period after TPR is granted. This is the biological parents one and only chance to argue that their rights were violated or the law not followed during the termination process. If they fail to appeal or lose at appeal, the termination becomes permanent and the children are freed for adoption. In the orientation, they emphasized that once the adoption is finalized, the biological parents can NEVER have it overturned for any reason. At this point, it is too late to make a claim of the law not being followed or to prove how good of parents they have become. I can't imagine that Illinois doesn't have a similar process to make sure that adoptions really are FINAL. Otherwise, nobody would ever feel "safe" adopting from the foster care system. Unfortunately our legal system allows anyone to file a case against anyone at anytime for any reason, but it doesn't mean that they have a legitimate case or any chance of winning. The fact that the letter was handwritten tells me that they probably don't have an attorney. I think an attorney would have sent something a little more professional than a handwritten letter. An attorney probably would have also advised them that they have no case. I would suggest you consult with an adoptions attorney, who will probbaly set your mind at ease about the legitimacy of their claim and work to get the case thrown out at the first hearing. As for protecting your kids from being approached by them, make sure that anyone who has contact with your kids (teachers, daycare center, etc.) knows what is going on and has a copy of the restraining order (assuming it is still valid). Advise them to be extra vigilant in watching the children and to call the police if the bio-parents show up or if anyone strange approaches the children. I'm sorry your family has to go through this. It must be a terrifying experience, but hopefully, it will all be resolved soon.
WOW...I'm in Central Illinois and just recently finalized the adoption of our son and daughter through foster care. What you are going through is scarring the heck out of me!! I was ALWAYS under the impression that once the rights are terminated and the time to appeal has gone by, that theres NO WAY the adoption can be reversed by the bio-parents. Please keep me imformed on the out-come. Good Luck
BZmom7
WOW...I'm in Central Illinois and just recently finalized the adoption of our son and daughter through foster care. What you are going through is scarring the heck out of me!! I was ALWAYS under the impression that once the rights are terminated and the time to appeal has gone by, that theres NO WAY the adoption can be reversed by the bio-parents. Please keep me imformed on the out-come. Good Luck