Greenberg and Greenberg Attorneys at Law

Practice Areas

Adoption laws differ from state to state. Federal and immigration laws also affect many procedures connected with adoptions. It is critically important to the stability of your family that your adoption comply with all applicable laws.

At Greenberg & Greenberg, whether or not you maintain an open or closed adoption is always our clients' decision.

The law firm of Greenberg and Greenberg has spent more than 35 years performing all necessary legal adoption services for clients in New York and across the country. We are pioneers in the field of domestic and international adoption.

Domestic Private Placement Adoptions
We represent New York and New Jersey parents in domestic adoptions. Thousands of newborn babies are adopted in the United States every year. If you are a single person or couple - including same sex couples when permitted by law - wishing to adopt a child in the United States, we provide all necessary legal services for your domestic adoption. Domestic adoptions are complex and may differ from state to state. If the child you are adopting is born in another state, the adoptive family must satisfy the laws of the state where the baby is born before they can bring the child into a different state. It is our job to make sure you comply with all laws that affect your adoption. Although a child cannot be legally relinquished until born, we help clients legally contact and interview birth families.

Pre-Certification Requirement in New York State
Many states, including New York, require adoptive parents to be pre-certified by the courts before pursuing an adoption. Precertification is a legal process that we handle at the start of every adoption. A successful pre-certification process is critical and involves filing pleadings with the appropriate court, a home study, child abuse clearance and criminal record check. Once you have precertification, you can proceed with pursuing a domestic adoption.

International Adoptions – (Non-Hague Countries)
We are pioneers in the field of international adoption law and we have helped thousands of people adopt children from many, many different countries - starting with our own adoption of our law partner and son, James in 1973. International adoption laws are complex and they can change at any point during the adoption process. We are highly skilled in international adoptions and, if you are considering adopting a child from another country, we can help you with all phases of the legal process.

Re-adoptions after completion of an international adoption.
If you have adopted a child from another country, it is usually advisable to "readopt" the child in accordance with state and federal laws of the United States. Re-adoptions ensure the stability of your family and we assist adoptive parents in this important process - whether you decide to do this immediately after bringing your child to the United States or several years later.

Representation of Birth Mothers
If you are a birth mother who wants to place your child for adoption, we will make sure your rights are protected and all state and federal laws complied with to effectuate the adoption. We will also assist you in meeting with and communicating with prospective adoptive parents.

Stepparent Adoptions
If you have married a person who has a child and you wish to adopt that child and it is legally permissible, we will perform all legal services required to effectuate the adoption.

Cross Adoptions – same sex couple adoptions.
Many states allow same sex couples to adopt and we are proud to represent same sex couples in the adoption of a child - whether domestic or international.

Name Change (for internationally born children after adoption).
Many times in an international adoption, the adoption decree is issued in the foreign birth name of the child. A name change is recommended so that your child will have his name corrected to the name you choose for your child. There are many legal requirements involved in this process, which we perform for clients in New York and New Jersey.

Wills and Guardianship to protect your new family.
Protecting your adopted child in the event something happens to you as parents is a critical step in the adoption process - one that may be overlooked in the exuberance of finally realizing your adoption dream. However, we believe it is critical that newly adoptive parents provide for the care and guardianship of their adopted child in the event of the parents' untimely death or disability. We perform the legal services necessary to ensure that your plans for your child are met through the proper estate planning documents - wills, living wills, power-of-attorney, trusts and guardianship.

Pre-adoption Approval Process
Many states, including New York, require all individuals seeking to adopt a child to be pre-approved by the courts. This pre-approval process is critical to your success and includes a home study, child abuse clearance and criminal record check prior to the adoption, and a follow-up home study before the adoption is finalized. We help you through this process.