Adoptive parents are being taken to court - they don't feel prepared
Several adoptive families criticize the Family Court for not preparing them for the risk of repeated lawsuits against the children's biological parents.
Imagine that you adopt a child. A child that you have to provide care and security for, while also having to hold meetings in the Family Court, hire a lawyer and conduct legal proceedings because the child's biological parents want visitation.
As TV2 ØST has previously reported , this is the situation of a woman from Zealand who in 2023 adopted a forcibly adopted Danish child.
"I never imagined that I would have contact with the legal system and that I would have to hire a lawyer. I've never done that before," says Julie.
TV2 ØST calls the woman Julie, but that is not the woman's real name. TV2 ØST knows the woman's identity, but has anonymized her because she fears for her own safety and that of her family.
Julie is not the only one in this situation.
- Time should pass with attachment
Two more adoptive families now tell TV2 ØST that they have been taken to court by their children's biological parents.
They tell of a grueling process and at the same time criticize the Family Court, which they believe has not prepared them for the situation they are in now.
Time should pass with attachment
Father of adopted child
An adoptive father, who wishes to remain anonymous, tells how hard the process has been:
- I wish we had received a little more information for the adoption preparation courses regarding how much court cases regarding visitation would take up in our lives, and how long and grueling a process it can be, when time should be passing with attachment.
A political project
Since 2019, the number of Danish children who have been adopted out without consent has increased.
In 2023, 29 Danish children were given up for adoption. One third of them were given up from Region Zealand.
The increase is due to a clear political agenda that more vulnerable children should have new, stable homes, explains Caroline Adolphsen, a professor of family law at Aarhus University.
Caroline Adolphsen is a professor and associate professor of family law at Aarhus University.Photo: Frederik Thorup - TV2 ØST
- The Prime Minister mentioned it himself in his New Year's speech in 2020, and since then attempts have been made to relax the rules and make it easier to carry out these forced adoptions, says Caroline Adolphsen and emphasizes:
- So it is intentional that more adoptions are made so that the children can more quickly get out of socially disadvantaged families and into families where they can stay.
Was invited to Danish adoption
Prior to the adoption, Julie participated in a preparatory course, where adopting a Danish child was highlighted as an especially good option.
Adoptive mother sued by son's biological parents
She had initially planned to adopt a child from abroad, but that changed along the way.
- During the course, we were made aware that it was a possibility, and that it was a good opportunity now, because there was a long waiting time for international adoptions. But due to new legislation, there were many Danish children up for adoption, and it would go fast, says Julie.
Legislation on adoption and visitation
According to the Adoption Act, a child can be adopted without the parents' consent if it is probable that the parents will be permanently unable to care for the child.
At the same time, section 20 a of the Parental Responsibility Act states that there must be the possibility of contact with the biological family if it is in the best interests of the child.
This is due, among other things, to the fact that Denmark is obliged to comply with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which concerns the right to family life.
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She therefore chose to register to adopt a Danish child. She was approved and was matched with a one and a half year old boy who had been forcibly removed at birth and had been living in foster care since then.
But after just 12 days as a new family, Julie was notified that the biological parents wanted to have contact with the boy. And when she said no to that request, the Family Court forwarded the case to the legal system.
"Julie" adopted a Danish boy in 2023. Since then, she has fought against his biological parents' desire to have contact with the boy.
Wasn't prepared for lawsuits
It appears from the Danish Social Appeals Board's information on national adoption that biological parents can apply for visitation.
But according to the three adoptive parents that TV2 ØST spoke to, this option is not something that has been further elaborated or explained in their adoption process.
For Julie, it wasn't something she considered as anything more than a theoretical possibility.
- I thought I could say no. I've been given this nice adoption certificate with a royal crown on it and everything, where it says that I'm now the legal parent. That's why I assume that I can choose whether there should be contact or not, she says and continues:
- I simply took that for granted. I've also never heard of cases where you had to go to court regarding visitation.
Will not stand
TV2 ØST has requested an interview with both the Danish Social Appeals Board and the Family Court, the two bodies that handle adoptions and visitation cases. Neither of them has wanted to appear.
TV2 ØST would like to have asked the Danish Social Appeals Board and the Family Court what they say about the criticism of the lack of advice.
More children are being forcibly adopted out
In an email, the Family Court House states the following:
- When the adopters are called to what are called the Phase 3 interviews, the applicants are guided to consider a number of aspects associated with adopting a child who has been forcibly adopted away, including the Family Court specifically asking the applicants to consider their future child's possible contact and interaction with its biological parents and what significance this may have for the child.
But none of the three adoptive families that TV2 ØST spoke to recognize that description.
- That's a flat out lie.
- That's a flat-out lie. Well, I hope they do it now, but that's not how it was, says Julie.
The same message comes from another adoptive parent that TV2 ØST has been in contact with. He is the adoptive father of two Danish children.
He wishes to remain anonymous, but says:
- Unfortunately, we must say that we cannot recognize the process as described. What has been mentioned does not correspond at all with our experience.
- The Family Court may have adjusted the process based on feedback, which we hope so, but that was not the case when we participated in the course in 2018.
- In connection with our youngest child, we were able to skip the course phase as we had already completed it, but we were never made aware of any changes to the procedure.
Until recently, visitation rights have not been granted to biological parents in cases like these. However, within the past month, visitation rights have been granted in two cases. Including Julie's case.