Adoption Law is a particularly complex area of law requiring attention to detail. This research guide was created to provide researchers with selected sources of state and federal law, basic sources describing agency adoptions, private (independent) adoptions, international adoptions, stepparent/kinship adoptions, LGBTQ adoptions, and open/closed adoptions, attorney and agency directories, and other aspects of adoption law.
Terminology associated with adoption law is extensive, and it is imperative for researchers to have a proper understanding and definitions of terms. Below are selected free and print publications with helpful glossaries defining important adoption-related terms of art.
Free Online Sources
Many academic institutions and professional associations publish research guides on topics across a multitude of disciplines. Research guides are helpful when exploring a new or unfamiliar topic. They provide links to primary and secondary sources on many aspects of children's rights, including family law, education, human rights, foreign and international legal research, and adoption.
In addition to this guide, below are links to selected guides available on the websites of MacMillan Law Library, Woodruff Library, several other academic libraries and the Library of Congress to help you begin the research process.
Children’s Law and Juvenile Justice (MacMillan Law Library - Emory Univ.)
Family Law Research Guide (Georgetown)
Foreign and International Law:
Adoption Law (Library of Congress)
Introduction to Foreign and Comparative Law Guide (MacMillan Law Library - Emory Univ.)
Treaties and Conventions (MacMillan Law Library - Emory Univ.)
Last updated on 1/16/2020 by Richelle Reid; adapted from a guide originally published by Vanessa King.