Harsh Consequences May Loom for Online Adoption Agencies Soliciting in Illinois

 Posted on December 06, 2013 in Children

On October 28, 2013, the state of Illinois, led by Attorney General Lisa Madigan, filed a lawsuit against Adoption Network Law Center based in California. The defendant is an online adoption agency that has broken numerous state laws by advertising and soliciting online adoption customers from the state of Illinois. The attorneys here at Angel Traub and Associates are carefully watching this case in order determine what effects it will have on adoption law in Illinois.

State of Illinois v. Adoption Network Law Center

The defendant, Adoption Network Law Center, is a California based online adoption agency and one of the very first websites that comes up in "online adoption" searches in Google. On their website, Adoption Network Law Center promises simple adoptions for a fee. In the State of Illinois' lawsuit it is alleged that Adoption Network Law Center is not certified by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (IDCFS) to provide adoption services, and thus is in violation of the Illinois Adoption Reform Act. Preceding the lawsuit, the attorney general sent cease and desist letters to Adoption Network Law Center and similar online adoption websites. Adoption Network Law Center did not stop advertising in Illinois, and as a result the above mention lawsuit was filed.

The Illinois Adoption Reform Act

In 2005, the state of Illinois passed the Illinois Adoption Reform Act, a law intended to shut down illegal adoption operations that are not sanctioned or authorized by the IDCFS. This law was in response to the 2005 Baby Tamia adoption scandal. In this case a young Illinois mother suffering from postpartum depression responded to an online adoption ad for her newborn child. After responding to the ad the mother was immediately flown across the country with her newborn child and basically forced to give up her child, and sign consent forms even against her protest that she was making a mistake. Though the mother was eventually reunited with her child, the situation gained national attention that led to the passing of the Illinois Adoption Reform Act. The law aims to regulate and basically prevent for-profit adoption agencies from operating and acting in the state of Illinois without the IDCFS consent.