South Carolina Code 63-9-710. Petition for adoption; use of fictitious names
(1) the full name, age, address, and place of residence of each petitioner, and, if married, the place and date of the marriage;
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 63-9-710
- Adoptee: means a person who is proposed to be or who has been legally adopted. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Adoption: means the judicial act of creating the relationship of parent and child where it did not exist previously. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- agency: means the State Department of Social Services and any person or entity who holds legal or physical custody of a child for the purpose of placement for adoption or a person or entity who facilitates the placement of children for the purpose of adoption. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Child: means any person under eighteen years of age. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Consent: means the informed and voluntary release in writing of all parental rights with respect to a child by a parent for the purpose of adoption, or the informed and voluntary release in writing of all custodial or guardianship rights, or both, with respect to a child by the child placing agency or person facilitating the placement of the child for adoption where the child's parent previously has executed a relinquishment to that agency or person. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Court: means any family court in this State. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Parent: means biological parent, adoptive parents, step-parent, or person with legal custody. See South Carolina Code 63-1-40
- Personal property: All property that is not real property.
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Relinquishment: means the informed and voluntary release in writing of all parental rights with respect to a child by a parent to a child placing agency or to a person who facilitates the placement of a child for the purpose of adoption and to whom the parent has given the right to consent to the adoption of the child. See South Carolina Code 63-9-30
- Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
(2) when the petitioner acquired, or intends to acquire, custody or placement of the child and from what person or agency;
(3) the date and place of birth of the child, if known;
(4) the name used for the child in the proceeding, and if a change in name is desired, the new name;
(5) that it is the desire of the petitioner to establish the relationship of parent and child between the petitioner and the child, and that the petitioner is a fit and proper person and able to care for the child and to provide for the child’s welfare;
(6) a full description and statement of value of all real property and of any personal property of value owned or possessed by the child;
(7) facts, if any, which excuse consent on the part of a parent to the adoption or which excuse notice of the adoption proceedings to a parent;
(8) facts, if any, which may permit placement with or adoption by nonresidents of this State, pursuant to § 63-9-60;
(9) the existence and nature of any prior court orders known to the petitioner which affect the custody, support, or visitation of the child;
(10) the relationship, if any, of each petitioner to the child; and
(11) the name and address of the child placing agency or the person facilitating placement of the child for adoption, if any.
(B)(1) The petition must be filed within sixty days of the date the adoptee is placed for the purpose of adoption in the home of the petitioner.
(2) For a child in the custody of the department by a removal action pursuant to § 63-7-1660 or an infant who has been voluntarily left with a safe haven pursuant to § 63-7-40, the petition for adoption may be filed prior to the issuance of a court order terminating parental rights to the child.
(C) All of the following must be filed at the time the adoption petition is filed or, after the filing, upon good cause shown:
(1) any consent or relinquishment required by § 63-9-310;
(2) the preplacement investigation report;
(3) the background investigation report;
(4) a statement of all payments of money or anything of value made within the past five years or agreed to be made in the future by or on behalf of the petitioner to any person, agency, or organization connected with the adoption that is not a disbursement made and reported pursuant to § 63-9-740.
(D) For purposes of this article, the petitioner may employ the use of fictitious names where necessary to avoid disclosure of identities of parties or persons, so long as service of process or notice is considered sufficient by the court.