Adoption Dictionary
Designated Adoption, Private Adoption, or Identified Adoption: An adoption in which expectant parents identify an adoptive family without the help of an agency or attorney
Direct Consent Adoption: An adoption where parental rights are transferred directly from the birthparents to the adoptive parents
Direct Placement: When adoptive families receive the baby immediately after discharge from the hospital
Disrupted Adoption: An adoption that fails before finalization
Dissolution of Adoption: An adoption that fails after finalization
Domestic Adoption: The adoption of a child who is born in the United States
Embryo Adoption: The receipt and legal possession of embryos from another couple. While this process is not a legal adoption, it possesses some aspects of traditional adoption, including Home Studies and openness about the way the child joined the family.
Embryo Donation: The donation of embryos created through ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology), which will not be implanted in the genetic mother but are instead donated to another set of parents for the intended purpose of pregnancy, birth, and parenting by that couple
Finalization: The legal process which makes the adoption permanent and binding
Home Study: A series of interviews (both joint and individual), a collection of documents, references, and home visit(s) that are part of the required pre-adoption process for all adoptive families
Identifying Information: Information about members of the adoption triad, such as full names, addresses, and other contact information
Independent Adoption: An adoption where the child is placed directly with the adoptive couple, usually through an attorney or intermediary, often without pre-adoption counseling for the birthparents or the adoptive couple
Intercountry Adoption (also known as International Adoption): Adoption of a child who was born in another country
Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children: A law that requires written notice and prior approval of the placement of a child for adoption or foster care from one state with a family in another state
Interim Care: A temporary, loving home for an infant while the parents make a final decision regarding adoption or parenting