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The Politics of Adoption

International Perspectives on Law, Policy & Practice

  • Book
  • © 2009

Overview

Editors:
  1. Kerry O'Halloran

    1. Australian Centre of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies, Queensland University of Technology Brisbane, Australia

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  • Provides a comparative analysis of adoption law, policy and practice across selected modern western nations
  • Traces the evolution of adoption law, policy and practice across many centuries and societies
  • Provides a comparative evaluation of adoption processes in England and Wales and other countries, including Australia, Ireland and the US, that share the common law tradition
  • Examines and evaluates the modern phenomenon of intercountry adoption
  • Contrasts the highly regulated legal process of modern western society with the traditional practice of indigenous communities such as the Maori
  • Examines the impact of recent international Conventions and related judicial decisions on national adoption law

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Table of contents (15 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxii
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  2. Introduction

    Pages 1-5

  3. Adoption: Concept, Principles, and Social Construct

    Pages 7-40

  4. The Changing Face of Adoption in the United Kingdom

    Pages 41-71

  5. The Legal Functions of Adoption

    Pages 73-100

  6. Adoption, the Conventions and the Impact of the European Court of Human Rights

    Pages 101-127

  7. Intercountry Adoption and the Hague Convention

    Pages 129-168

  8. The Adoption Process in England & Wales

    Pages 169-209

  9. The Adoption Process in Ireland

    Pages 211-248

  10. The Adoption Process in the U.S.

    Pages 249-283

  11. The Adoption Process in Australia

    Pages 285-320

  12. The Adoption Process in Sweden

    Pages 321-348

  13. The Adoption Process in France

    Pages 349-378

  14. The Adoption Process in an Islamic Context

    Pages 379-402

  15. The Adoption Process in Japan

    Pages 403-432

  16. Intraculture Adoption

    Pages 433-460

  17. Back Matter

    Pages 461-495
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Keywords

About this book

Adoption has always had a political dimension. Its use to achieve political ends has been evident throughout history and in many different cultures. In Roman times, an emperor would adopt a successful general to 1 continue his rule. In Ireland, under the Brehon Laws, the reciprocal placements of 2 children between clans was an accepted means of cementing mutual allegiances. In Japan, the adoption of non-relatives was traditionally seen as a means of allying 3 with the fortunes of the ruling family. The willingness of governments to use adoption as a political strategy was apparent, for example, in Australia where it was used to 4 further the assimilation of indigenous people. It is now present in the phenomenon of intercountry adoption where the flow of children, particularly in the aftermath of war, is often politics by proxy. Adoption can be profoundly affected by politics, as demonstrated by the decision of the Chinese government to advocate ‘one-child families’ which resulted in very many Chinese girls being relinquished for adoption abroad as their parents exercised a preference for a male child. Again, as in Korea in the recent past, c- rently in some South American countries and in those states of eastern Europe newly emerged from under the blanket of totalitarianism, governments can and do facilitate an outward flow of children for reasons of economic and political 5 expediency.

Reviews

“This is an excellent publication for those wanting to get an international perspective on the politics of adoption. It is authoritative and greatly informative.” (Professor John Triseliotis)

“Kerry O’Halloran’s Politics of Adoption provides a comprehensive and thoughtful overview of adoption law, both domestic and international, in the common law world. It is an invaluable resource not only for practitioners and scholars but for anyone interested in acquiring an in depth understanding of adoption in all its forms and complexity.” (Barbara Bennett Woodhouse, David H. Levin Chair in Family Law, Director, Center on Children and Families, Fredric G. Levin College of Law, Co-Director, Institute for Child and Adolescent Research and Evaluation (ICARE), Gainesville, Florida)

Editors and Affiliations

  • Australian Centre of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies, Queensland University of Technology Brisbane, Australia

    Kerry O'Halloran

About the editor

Kerry O’Halloran is a lawyer, social worker and academic who has spent most of his professional life engaged with this subject. The Politics of Adoption is the product of rigorous research, validated by academics in the countries concerned and is written in an accessible manner to appeal not only to academics and practitioners but also to the many whose lives have been touched by adoption.

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