If your child qualifies for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), you've probably run into the phrase "reunification is not viable." It sounds like legal jargon but it plays a huge role in whether a child can get this protection. Here's what it means and how it...
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, known as SIJS, helps certain immigrant children obtain lawful permanent residency. If you care for a child who fled trauma in their home country, you likely worry about their safety. This federal designation offers a solution for...
Adopting an older child can bring excitement and difficult questions. You may wonder whether they have a legal say or how to discuss the process without placing pressure on them. Michigan gives older adoptees a direct role because finalization permanently changes...
Adult adoption can be a meaningful way to legally recognize a parent-child relationship that already exists in practice. If you helped raise someone as a stepparent, foster parent or mentor, Michigan law allows you to adopt someone even if they are 18 or older....
Most grandparents do not expect to become a child's primary caregiver. Yet family circumstances can shift quickly. You may suddenly have to make choices that affect your grandchild's future. If that role becomes long term, it helps to understand the difference between...
An adoption plan can bring hope and serious emotional strain at the same time. A birth parent can change his or her mind about proceeding with an adoption at any time before signing a release or consent. Even after a parent signs paperwork, difficult feelings may...
Adoption is not only for children, adults of any age can legally pursue adoption. Your reasons for exploring this path may be deeply personal. You may have grown up with a stepparent, grandparent or close family figure who raised you as their own. Just like any other...
International adoption can feel exciting and overwhelming at the same time. You want to expand your family while making a positive difference in a child’s life. Since this may be your first time navigating the process, it helps to know what many first-time parents...
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) helps certain immigrant children stay safely in the United States. It is for young people who cannot live with one or both parents because of abuse, neglect or abandonment. While SIJS is a federal benefit, state law plays a...
You stepped up during a difficult time to provide a safe harbor for a child in need. For many guardians, what starts as a temporary arrangement often grows into a deep, parental bond over months or years. You have already done the hard work of building a home and a...