Adoption Consent Form - Preparation Worksheet - South Dakota

SOUTH DAKOTA ADOPTION CONSENT — ROUTE AND DRAFTING PACKET

NOT AN OPERATIVE CONSENT — DO NOT SIGN OR FILE. This packet separates a
Chapter 25-6 adoption consent from a Chapter 25-5A voluntary termination of
parental rights. Counsel must select and complete the correct court process.

1. Matter control

2. Select the statutory route before drafting

Select one primary route. Do not combine their timing, counseling, appearance,
or legal-effect rules.

Route A — Consent within a Chapter 25-6 adoption

☐ A circuit-court adoption petition is or will be pending.

☐ Counsel has identified every person whose consent is necessary under current
law and any person from whom the court must waive consent under § 25-6-4.

☐ The written consent, the adopting person's separate agreement, filing, and
hearing appearances will be handled under § 25-6-12.

Route B — Voluntary termination under Chapter 25-5A

☐ A parent will petition for voluntary termination before or apart from the
adoption.

☐ The Chapter 25-5A petition, medical-and-social-history form, counseling,
notice, appearance, hearing, and proposed order are being prepared separately.

☐ The petition will not be filed before five days after the child's birth.
This is the filing restriction in § 25-5A-4. It is not a five-day adoption-
consent signing rule and not a five-day consent-revocation period.

Route C — Court determination that consent may be waived

☐ Counsel will plead and prove a current statutory ground under § 25-6-4.

☐ No private form states that another person's consent is unnecessary. That is
a court determination under the statute, not a representation by the signer.

Selected route and reason: [________________________________]

3. Court, jurisdiction, and venue

South Dakota circuit courts determine adoption matters under § 25-6-6. Under
the current text of § 25-6-7, as amended by 2026 Session Laws chapter 120, the
petition may be filed in the circuit court for:

1. the county where the adopting parent resides;

2. the county where the authorized agency having legal or physical care,
   custody, or control of the child is located; or

3. the county where the child was born or resides.

Do not label the tribunal a generic “Family Court.” Confirm the circuit-court
caption and current local filing instructions.

4. Parentage, consent, notice, and custody map

Section 25-6-4 begins with the rule that a child may not be adopted without the
parents' consent, subject to a court waiver on one of the statute's grounds.
Investigate status rather than relying on labels supplied by the parties.

If the child is over twelve, § 25-6-5 requires the child's consent. Prepare the
child's consent and participation process separately under counsel and court
direction.

5. Chapter 25-6 written-document and appearance plan

Section 25-6-12 requires, before the adoption hearing:

• written consent from the person adopting, the child adopted, and the other
  persons whose consent is necessary;

• a separate agreement by the person adopting that the child will be treated
  in all respects as the adopter's own; and

• filing of the consent forms and adopter agreement with the court.

The statute also addresses who appears at the hearing and when the court may
allow another means of appearance or specified representation. Do not replace
that statutory process with a notary block, electronic-signature clause,
private power of attorney, or waiver of all future notice drafted without
case-specific authority and court approval.

6. Chapter 25-5A voluntary-termination controls — Route B only

Do not complete this section for a direct Chapter 25-6 consent unless counsel
confirms that a Chapter 25-5A proceeding is also required.

Timing

Child's date and time of birth: [________________________________]

Earliest Chapter 25-5A petition filing date calculated under § 25-5A-4:
[________________________________]

Medical and social history

Before consent to voluntary termination is given, § 25-5A-7.2 requires the
parent to complete the medical and social history form supplied by the
Department of Social Services. Record the form and filing plan:

[____________________________________________________________]

Counseling

Section 25-5A-22 requires a birthparent planning to petition for voluntary
termination to obtain counseling from one of the providers listed there,
including an appropriately experienced licensed child-placement agency, the
Department of Social Services, or an appropriately experienced certified
social worker, licensed counselor, or licensed psychologist.

Provider, qualifications, date, and record: [________________________________]

Section 25-5A-25 says noncompliance with §§ 25-5A-22 through 25-5A-24 may not
be used as a basis to set aside a voluntary termination or adoption. That rule
does not convert counseling into an optional checkbox or authorize a private
waiver.

Hearing and order

Section 25-5A-14 requires the personal presence of one parent for
jurisdictional purposes and states limited conditions for a permitted
telephonic appearance by an incarcerated parent. Obtain a court ruling for any
alternative appearance.

Parent who will personally appear: [________________________________]

Proposed hearing date and court direction: [________________________________]

Parental rights are terminated and transferred through the court order
described in § 25-5A-18, after the statutory findings and process. A signature
on this preparation packet does not terminate rights.

7. Voluntariness, payment, and pressure screen

Section 25-6-4.1 makes it unlawful to compel, coerce, or force a person by any
means to release, sell, place, relinquish, or give up a minor child for
adoption. Section 25-6-4.2 prohibits money, consideration, or things of value
connected with placement, consent, or the adoption petition except court-
approved charges and fees of agencies licensed under Chapter 26-6.

If any concern remains unresolved, stop the signing process and obtain
independent legal and court direction.

8. Indian Child Welfare Act and tribal inquiry

Section 25-6-24 requires due regard to the Indian Child Welfare Act if it
applies. Do not reach a non-applicability conclusion from appearance, surname,
place of residence, family silence, or a prechecked representation.

9. Effect and post-adoption issues

Under § 25-6-17, the natural parents are relieved of parental duties and
responsibility “from the time of the adoption.” Do not state that all rights
terminate merely when a consent is signed. Counsel must separately analyze the
statutory exceptions, any proposed pre-adoption agreement, child-support
arrearages, and the effect of a Chapter 25-5A order if that route is used.

10. Operative-document drafting workspace

Counsel should use any current required form or prepare a separate document
accepted by the selected circuit court. This workspace is not a signature
page.

Do not add contract consideration recitals, representations and warranties,
defaults, cure periods, confidentiality covenants, non-interference promises,
specific performance, injunctions, fee shifting, indemnity, liability caps,
forum-selection language, arbitration, jury waiver, entire-agreement terms,
assignability, severability, counterparts, or electronic-signature language
unless current authority and case-specific counsel require the exact term.

11. Final counsel verification

☐ Correct route selected; inconsistent route language removed.

☐ Parentage, custody, every required consent, notice, and any court-waiver
ground investigated.

☐ Child-over-twelve rule applied if relevant.

☐ Circuit-court jurisdiction, one of the three current venue grounds, caption,
and local filing instructions confirmed.

☐ Section 25-6-12 documents, filing, and appearances mapped.

☐ For Route B, five-day petition-filing calculation, history form, counseling,
appearance, notice, findings, and proposed order separately completed.

☐ No invented revocation period or unsupported signing method included.

☐ Coercion, consideration, tribal-child, and special-jurisdiction screens
completed.

☐ Legal effect is tied to the applicable court order or adoption, not merely
to a signature.

Reviewing South Dakota attorney: [________________________________]

Review date: [__/__/____]

Approved operative document or official form: [________________________________]

OFFICIAL SOURCES

• S.D.C.L. Chapter 25-6 — Adoption of Children
• S.D.C.L. § 25-6-4 — parental consent and court waiver
• S.D.C.L. §§ 25-6-4.1 and 25-6-4.2 — coercion and consideration
• S.D.C.L. § 25-6-5 — child over twelve
• S.D.C.L. §§ 25-6-6 and 25-6-7 — circuit court and venue
• S.D.C.L. § 25-6-12 — written documents, filing, and appearances
• S.D.C.L. §§ 25-6-17 and 25-6-24 — effect and ICWA gate
• S.D.C.L. Chapter 25-5A — Voluntary Termination of Parental Relations
• S.D.C.L. § 25-5A-4 — petition-filing waiting period
• S.D.C.L. §§ 25-5A-7.2, 25-5A-14, and 25-5A-18 — history, appearance, and order
• S.D.C.L. §§ 25-5A-22 through 25-5A-25 — counseling