Adoption Consent Form - Preparation Worksheet - Maryland

MARYLAND ADOPTION CONSENT ROUTE AND PREPARATION WORKSHEET

This worksheet helps counsel select and prepare the current official Maryland consent package. It is deliberately not written as a consent and has no signature block. Do not sign this worksheet or use it in place of a Maryland Judiciary, agency, or court-directed form.

1. Stop and select the legal route

Select one route only after counsel reviews the existing custody and parental-rights record.

Public-agency adoption without prior termination of parental rights

• ☐ The prospective adoptee is a child in need of assistance.
• ☐ The petitioner seeks adoption without a prior termination order.
• ☐ Use current Maryland Judiciary Form CC-DR-100, Consent of Parent to a Public Agency Adoption Without Prior Termination of Parental Rights (Form 9-102.2).
• ☐ Counsel confirmed the juvenile case, notice, filing, and revocation instructions printed on the current form.

Private-agency guardianship or adoption

• ☐ A licensed private child-placement agency is arranging the matter.
• ☐ Do not use the independent-adoption parent forms merely because the proposed adoptive parents are known.
• ☐ The agency and counsel identified the required guardianship or adoption consent and every attachment.
• ☐ If a minor or disabled parent's consent requires counsel's affidavit, review current CC-DR-105, Attorney Affidavit as to Consent of a Parent to a Private Agency Guardianship (Form 9-102.7).
• ☐ Counsel applied Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3A-19 to the guardianship-consent route.

Independent adoption — consenting parent's rights will end

• ☐ The adoption is not arranged by an adoption or child-placement agency.
• ☐ The consenting parent's parental rights will terminate if the adoption is granted.
• ☐ Use current CC-DR-101, Consent of Parent to an Independent Adoption With Termination of Parental Rights (Form 9-102.3).

Independent adoption — consenting parent will retain rights

• ☐ The adoption is not arranged by an adoption or child-placement agency.
• ☐ The consenting parent will retain parental rights, as may occur for the custodial parent in a stepparent adoption.
• ☐ Use current CC-DR-102, Consent of Parent to an Independent Adoption Without Termination of Parental Rights (Form 9-102.4).

Child consent

• ☐ Counsel determined whether the prospective adoptee's consent is required. For an independent adoption of a minor, § 5-3B-20 requires consent if the prospective adoptee is at least ten years old.
• ☐ Agency route: use current CC-DR-103, Consent of Child to a Public Agency Adoption or Private Agency Adoption (Form 9-102.5) when applicable.
• ☐ Independent route: use current CC-DR-104, Consent of Child to an Independent Adoption (Form 9-102.6) when applicable.
• ☐ Counsel determined whether CC-DR-107, Attorney Affidavit as to Consent of a Child to Adoption (Form 9-102.9) is required.

Different proceeding

• ☐ Adult adoption, contested adoption, prior termination, CINA guardianship, confirmatory parentage/adoption, interstate placement, tribal or Indian-child matter, or foreign adoption is involved.
• ☐ Stop. Obtain the route-specific petition, consent, notice, and court instructions. Do not adapt this worksheet into an operative instrument.

Selected route: [________________________________]

Current official form number and revision date: [________________________________]

Attorney or agency confirming route: [________________________________]

Date confirmed: [__/__/____]

2. Court and case control

Do not invent a private forum-selection clause. The correct Circuit Court, clerk, case caption, and related-case treatment must come from the governing route and court instructions.

3. Prospective adoptee information

4. Consent and rights-status matrix

List every person or unit whose consent, notice, objection, prior termination, or court finding may matter. A blank line is not a waiver.

• ☐ Birth-certificate, parentage, marriage, domestic-partnership, acknowledgment, genetic-testing, and prior-order records were reviewed.
• ☐ Every alleged, acknowledged, adjudicated, presumed, or de facto parent was addressed.
• ☐ A contested or missing consent is being handled through the court process, not through a private waiver, default clause, or promise not to object.
• ☐ The adult-adoption exception and any assisted-reproduction or confirmatory route were considered.

5. Independent-adoption validity checklist

Complete this section only for the independent-adoption route.

• ☐ The child has already been born. Section 5-3B-21 does not validate a pre-birth consent.
• ☐ The signer received the consent and instructions in a language the signer understands.
• ☐ If the consent is in a language other than English, counsel arranged either an on-the-record consent before a judge or the translator affidavit required by § 5-3B-21.
• ☐ The official form contains the required notice of the parent's 30-day revocation right and adoption-record rights.
• ☐ Unless the adoption is by a spouse of the prospective adoptee's parent or by a relative, the official form advises the parent of the rights to independent counsel and adoption counseling and guidance.
• ☐ The official form records whether the parent chose or declined counsel and counseling. Counseling is not converted into a universal mandatory completed-session requirement.
• ☐ If the parent is a minor or has a disability within § 5-3B-06, appointed counsel reviewed the matter and the required attorney affidavit is prepared on current CC-DR-106 (Form 9-102.8).
• ☐ No lawyer or firm represents both a prospective adoptive parent and a parent in the same adoption case.
• ☐ Counsel determined whether a post-adoption agreement exists and whether a copy must accompany the consent.
• ☐ The official form's signed instructions, witness information, copy requirement, and filing directions will be followed exactly.

6. Route-specific revocation control

Do not use one generic revocation clause across Maryland adoption routes.

For an independent adoption, § 5-3B-21 also permits the prospective adoptee to revoke consent before the court enters the adoption order. A private notice to the prospective adoptive parents or their lawyer is not substituted for delivery to the court specified by the governing form.

7. Counsel, counseling, language, and capacity record

• ☐ The signer understands that prospective-adoptive-parent counsel does not represent the signer.
• ☐ Any decision to decline counsel or counseling is recorded only where the official form and current law permit it.
• ☐ Any appointed-counsel affidavit addresses knowing and voluntary consent in the required form.
• ☐ No invented counselor certification, waiting period after counseling, notarization requirement, or electronic-signature permission has been added.

8. Expense and compensation review

Do not describe payments as consideration for consent. Section 5-3B-32 prohibits compensation for placement or an agreement for custody in contemplation of adoption, while permitting only the listed reasonable charges and expenses.

• ☐ No payment is conditioned on signing, not revoking, surrendering custody, or completing the adoption.
• ☐ Food, clothing, or shelter expenses for a birth mother are supported by the written physician advice required by § 5-3B-32 when that category is used.
• ☐ Required court-appearance, medical-transportation, counseling, hospital, legal, and medical expenses were reviewed for reasonableness and documentation.
• ☐ Counsel reviewed any interstate, agency, ethics, trust-account, disclosure, or court-approval requirement.

9. Official-form preparation record

Transfer the final information to the current official form. Do not add consideration recitals, representations and warranties, noninterference covenants, default and cure terms, specific performance, prevailing-party fees, indemnity, liability caps, forum selection, jury waiver, assignment, counterparts, or private electronic-signature clauses.

10. Final legal review

• ☐ The current Maryland Judiciary forms index was checked on [__/__/____].
• ☐ The form number, title, and revision date match the selected route.
• ☐ All statutory consents, notices, objections, prior terminations, and court findings were addressed.
• ☐ The required child consent and any attorney affidavit were addressed.
• ☐ The exact execution method, adult witness, signed-instructions attachment, and copy requirement were confirmed from the current form.
• ☐ The revocation deadline and court delivery address were calculated separately for this route.
• ☐ Any post-adoption agreement, Indian Child Welfare Act issue, interstate placement, immigration issue, or foreign order received separate review.
• ☐ No one will sign until independent counsel, agency counsel, and the filing court's current instructions are satisfied.

Reviewing Maryland attorney: [________________________________]

Maryland attorney number: [________________________________]

Review completed: [__/__/____]

Sources and References

• Maryland Judiciary — Family Law Court Forms
• CC-DR-100 — Public Agency Adoption Without Prior Termination
• CC-DR-101 — Independent Adoption With Termination of Parental Rights
• CC-DR-102 — Independent Adoption Without Termination of Parental Rights
• CC-DR-103 — Child Consent to Public or Private Agency Adoption
• CC-DR-104 — Child Consent to Independent Adoption
• CC-DR-105 — Attorney Affidavit for Private Agency Guardianship Consent
• CC-DR-106 — Attorney Affidavit for Parent Consent to Adoption
• CC-DR-107 — Attorney Affidavit for Child Consent to Adoption
• Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3A-19
• Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3B-06
• Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3B-20
• Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3B-21
• Md. Code, Family Law § 5-3B-32