Families by Law: An Adoption Reader - Hardcover

"The essays encompass the main controversies in the field, placing them in their historical and social contexts. The book will be very useful for courses focusing on this issue, and will serve researchers in welfare history, public policy, legal history, family history, and history of childhood." -CHOICE< "This source book expresses Cahn and Hollinger's keen understanding of adoption law, combining classic articles, new material, and penetrating commentary on every critical and controversial dimension of adoption. Those fortunate enough to read this book from cover to cover will vastly expand their appreciation for adoption issues." -Richard P. Barth,Frank A. Daniels Distinguished Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill "An outstanding collection, offering in-depth coverage of all the crucial and current issues in adoption law and practice. Families by Law is both a wonderful supplement to a traditional family law course or stand on its own as the perfect text for studying adoption in the United States today. I am thrilled to have this resource now available to those who teach or think about adoption." -Carol Sanger,Columbia Law School "A strong argument." The law and Politics Book Review "Cahn and Hollinger have covered diverse topics - from foster care, to attachment, to racial and ethnic identity in transracial adoption, to legal issues in gay and lesbian adoptions." -Adoptive Families "A collection that will interest and assist psychologists who work with the wide range of children included in this book. I learned a good deal in my reading of these articles and find it easy to recommend the book to any psychologist whose clinical practice, research, or teaching includes consideration of parent-child relationships, adoption, foster care, child custody, and the significance of family for individual development and social cohesion. . . . Wide-ranging and provocative in its approach to the issue addressed." -The American Psychological Association

Since the mid-19th century, American law has recognized adoption as a way to create parent-child relationships. As the product of law, rather than blood, adoptive families have become a focal point for debates about the meaning of family, the rights and responsibilities of parents, and the best interests of children. Families by Law brings together diverse perspectives on contemporary aspects of adoption law and practice. Following a historical overview of adoption in American law and society, the reader presents different responses to concerns about who may place children for adoption, the status of birth parents, who may adopt, and the legal and psychosocial consequences of adoption. The new frontiers of adoption are explored: from transracial and intercountry adoption, adoption by same sex couples, and the adoption of children with special needs, to the movements for opening records and maintaining post-adoption contact between adoptive and birth families. The relationship between adoption and assisted reproductive technologies is discussed, as are feminist, economic, and philosophical perspectives on adoption and procreation. The volume includes statutes and cases, advocacy organization statements, and pieces from legal scholars, social scientists, philosophers, psychologists, and sociologists in order to provide a wealth of information about the contemporary dimensions of adoption. Families by Law provides undergraduates, as well as law, social welfare, and public policy graduate students and others interested in family relationships with a multifaceted context for understanding the complexities of contemporary family life.