Standby Adoption

Greenlight Family Services knows that the death or incapacitation of a parent can leave a family devastated and too often it is the children who face the most uncertainty as their futures are decided by others.

Parents will sometimes try to plan ahead by providing instructions for the care of their child in a legal will. However, what many families and some attorneys do not realize is that a legal will is not enough. Because a child is not property, he or she cannot be willed to a person of the parent’s choosing. This sometimes leads to custody battles among relatives, or with the child entering the foster care system if no one steps forward to take them in.

A standby adoption provided by Greenlight legal services allows the parent to choose who will care for their child in the event of death or incapacitation. It is a legal process that allows the standby parent to easily gain legal custody of the child if the need arises.