§48-23-101. Policy regarding persons obtaining identifying information after adoption. (a) Adoption is based upon the legal termination of parental rights and responsibilities of birth parents and the creation of the legal relationship of parent and child between an adoptee and his or her adoptive parents. These legal and social premises underlying adoption must be maintained. […]
The purpose of this article is to: (1) Set up a mutual consent voluntary adoption registry where birth parents and adult adoptees may register their willingness to the release of identifying information to each other;
§48-23-201. Applicability of definitions. For the purposes of this article the words or terms defined in this article, and any variation of those words or terms required by the context, have the meanings ascribed to them in this article. These definitions are applicable unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context.
"Adoptee" means a person who has been legally adopted in the State of West Virginia.
"Adoption" means the judicial act of creating the relationship of parent and child where it did not exist previously.
"Adult" means a person who is eighteen years of age or more.
"Agency" means any public or voluntary organization licensed or approved pursuant to the laws of any jurisdiction within the United States to place children for adoption.
"Genetic and social history" means a comprehensive report, when obtainable, on the birth parents, siblings to the birth parents, if any, other children of either birth parent, if any, and parents of the birth parents, which shall contain the following information: (1) Medical history;
"Health history" means a comprehensive report of the child's health status at the time of placement for adoption and medical history, including neonatal, psychological, physiological and medical care history.
"Mutual consent voluntary adoption registry" or "registry" means a place provided for herein where eligible persons as described in section 23-501 may indicate their willingness to have their identity and whereabouts disclosed to each other under conditions specified in this article.
"Putative father" means any man not deemed or adjudicated under the laws of a jurisdiction of the United States to be the father of genetic origin of a child and who claims or is alleged to be the father of genetic origin of such child.
OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION REGISTRY. §48-23-301. Division of human services to establish and maintain mutual consent voluntary adoption registry. The division of human services, as provided for in §9-2-1, et seq. of this code, shall establish and maintain the mutual consent voluntary adoption registry, except that the division may contract out the function of establishing and […]
§48-23-401. Persons to whom use of the mutual consent voluntary adoption registry is available. Use of the mutual consent voluntary adoption registry for obtaining identifying information about birth parents and adult adoptees is available to birth parents and adult adoptees, except as otherwise limited by section 23-402.
(a) A birth parent is not eligible to use the registry until his or her child who was adopted is eighteen years of age or older. (b) An adult adoptee is not eligible to use the registry if he or she has a sibling in his or her adoptive family who is under the age […]
A birth father may register if: (1) He was named as the father in the original sealed birth certificate;
If a birth parent used an alias name in terminating his or her parental rights, and the alias is listed in the original sealed birth record, that birth parent may register if the agency, organization, entity or person that placed the child for adoption, certifies to the court that the individual seeking to register used […]
§48-23-501. Prerequisites to disclosure of identifying information. The adult adoptee and each birth parent may voluntarily, without having been contacted by any employee or agent of the entity operating the registry, place his or her name in the appropriate registry before any disclosure or identifying information can be made. A qualified person may register by […]
Upon registering, the registrant shall participate in not less than one hour of counseling with a social worker employed by the entity that operates the registry, except if a birth parent or adult adoptee is domiciled outside the state, he or she shall obtain counseling from a social worker employed by a licensed agency in […]
In any case where the identity of the birth father was unknown to the birth mother, or where the administrator learns that one or both of the birth parents are deceased, this information shall be shared with the adult adoptee. In these kinds of cases, the adoptee will not be able to obtain identifying information […]
(a) Each mutual consent voluntary adoption registry must be operated under the direction of an administrator. (b) A person eligible to register may request the administrator to disclose identifying information by filing an affidavit which sets forth the following: (1) The current name and address of the affiant;
