LIFE&FAMILY

Adoption and the law

Jenny Lai, Jenny Lai & Co

Very briefly, what is the adoption

process in Singapore?

Adoption applications are decided by

the Family Justice Courts of Singapore.
However, before the court is involved,
prospective parents should follow the
process specified by the Ministry of
Social and Family Development (MSF).
This commences with attendance at a
compulsory pre-adoption briefing, an
assessment for suitability, endorsement
by the country of citizenship (in the
case of expats), identification of a
child, and obtaining all the necessary
identification documents. (You can find
lots of information on this at msf.gov.
sg/adoption.)

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In one instance, during the MSF home

study the child was discovered to suffer
from fatty liver. MSF wanted the adoptive
parents to return the child and abort the
case. The child had been with the adoptive
parents for a few months by then, and
they had developed a strong bond with
the child, so they asked me to intervene.
I proposed showing to MSF that they had

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Can you explain some case

studies to describe your work
in practice?

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MSF conducts a home study after

the court has granted the in-principle
approval. When the MSF study report
is ready, we can ask the court for a
final hearing date. After the hearing,
and if an adoption order is made, the
Immigration Authority will prepare a
new birth certificate stating the adoptive
parents names.

What is the role of MSF?

the means to finance the medical bills for

the child, and the case went ahead. The
Adoption Order was granted.
My client in another case was a single
elderly lady, and the court was concerned
about her age and her means to raise
the child. This was a very interesting
case of a Malaysian boy adopted by a
Singaporean woman in Malaysia. The
Singapore Immigration Department did
not recognise the adoption order granted
by the Malaysian courts. The boy had
been with her for six years when my client
came to me to start a fresh adoption
application in Singapore. I helped her to
assure the courts that there were support
systems in place in the event that she
should pass on.

After the MSF assessment, its time

to approach a lawyer to get the legal
work started. The process from the
application to the final order being
granted takes about six to 12 months,
depending on the complexity of the
legal issues.

When is it necessary to engage a

lawyer in the adoption process?

Anything else to keep in mind?

In cases where the child is from a

previous marriage, extra considerations
have to be given. The Singapore courts
view is that divorce does not sever
parental ties. In these cases, I have
to go the extra mile to help clients to
overcome this hurdle through proof of
abandonment or estrangement.

Jenny Lai & Co.

101A Upper Cross Street, #0820 Peoples Park Centre
6227 7347 | jlco.com.sg

January16

19/12/15 10:05 am