I decided to forge ahead and attempt the court system without hiring an attorney. There are about a dozen forms to fill out, certified copies required from your paperwork received in China etc but if you have come this far in an adoption what are a few more forms. Right??
Now that I am done I am so happy I chose not to hire anyone. Keep in mind this process completely depends on the type of visa your child gets from the embassy. Tessa came in on an IR3, so a re-adoption wasn't necessary as she became a citizen when we landed.
I arrived 10 minutes ahead of time, walked into the court room only to discover it full of "suits" (AKA attorneys). Undeterred I marched myself to the sign in sheet and had a seat. Come to find out that civilians go after attorneys, which I now understand is a courtesy as attorneys are expensive. I am fine with this, however the judge was late, many of the attorneys were late, while others would come in get their name of the list and not be there when they were called leaving this civilian constantly getting bumped for these chumps! Hey you can read..there is a 30 minute window to get on the list, I made it. GRRR. Good thing I didn't have to go to work and that I didn't have Tessa because the wait was over an hour for a 10 minute meeting with the judge. No drinks, no phone just the constant murmur of the cops talking about nothing in particular. Civilians are required to have a cop escort them to the judges chambers. The judge was a bit stiff, if I am being honest, and asked me to come back with the file number. Listening to him attempt to pronounce Tessa's Chinese middle name made me giggle. I ultimately had to pronounce and spell it for the stenographer.
After you go to Motions Court you have to go to Orphans Court which was very pleasant - the lady was wonderful. She told me I didn't need to go back and she would take the blame. I explained to her the judge specifically asked me to come back and she rolled her eyes! Ha, this man must have a reputation. So I marched myself back to Motions Court.
And that was it! Tessa is officially in the courts and her birth certificates will be here soon! YAHOO.
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3 comments:
Determination and Grit - you go girl, a mother on a mission is no contest against a room full of suits and a stiff judge! Yippee!
Wow, you are gutsy girl! Way to go! Congratulations. what a weight off the shoulders. Love, Mom H.
Awesome! You go! Clearly, the system in your county is much better than in our county. We couldn't even get the correct forms. The ones we got in the mail were musty smelling and full of typos. I'm pretty sure they set it up so you are reliant on an attorney. When I got to our lawyer's office she had everything online she needed from the court to proceed. Grrrr. Anyway, I'm impressed by you! :D
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