Supporting your family through every step of adoption

Adoption in Ontario, explained simply

Adoption creates a permanent legal parent-child relationship. Once a court makes an adoption order, the adoptive parent has all the rights and responsibilities of a parent – for life – and the child is treated in law as their child.

In Ontario, adoption is governed by the Child, Youth and Family Services Act. Every adoption needs a court order, and every decision turns on one question: is this adoption in the child’s best interests?

Many of the families we help are already living together. A step-parent may have raised a child for years and wants the law to reflect it. A grandparent, aunt or uncle may be caring for a child whose parents can’t. Others are welcoming a child through a private or public adoption.

An adoption also changes the legal relationship with a birth parent. In a step-parent adoption, the parent who isn’t your spouse generally stops being the child’s legal parent, including their rights and obligations such as child support going forward. That’s a serious change, and it’s why consent matters so much.

How we can help

We handle the legal side of adoption with care and attention to detail, so the process feels manageable and your application is complete the first time it goes to the judge.

• Assessing your situation. We explain which type of adoption applies, whose consent is needed and what the court will expect to see.

• Obtaining consents. We prepare the consent forms, make sure birth parents can get independent legal advice and coordinate with the Office of the Children’s Lawyer when an older child needs to consent.

• Dealing with a missing or unwilling parent. If a parent can’t be found or won’t consent, we can ask the court to dispense with (excuse) that consent where the adoption is in the child’s best interests.

• Preparing the court application. We draft the application, affidavits and supporting documents and file them with the court.

• Working with other professionals. Where a home study, an adoption practitioner or a children’s aid society is involved, we work alongside them so the legal and practical steps line up.

• Planning the details. We help you decide whether to change the child’s name as part of the adoption and explain how the birth registration is updated afterwards.

How the process works

The steps depend on the type of adoption. Here’s how a step-parent or relative adoption usually unfolds. Timing depends on how quickly consents and documents come together and on court schedules – many take several months, and contested ones can take longer.

1. Consultation. We review your family’s situation, confirm you can apply and identify everyone whose consent is needed.

2. Consents. Each legal parent signs a written consent, ideally after getting independent legal advice. A child who is 7 or older generally must consent too, after meeting privately with a lawyer from the Office of the Children’s Lawyer.

3. Waiting period. A person who consents generally has 21 days to change their mind and withdraw in writing. We let that period pass before the application goes forward.

4. Application. We prepare and file the application with supporting affidavits and documents, such as the child’s birth certificate. If a consent can’t be obtained, we bring a motion asking the court to dispense with it.

5. Court review. In many uncontested step-parent and relative adoptions, a judge reviews the paperwork without anyone needing to attend court. The judge may ask for more information, or for a home study, before deciding.

6. Adoption order. Once the judge is satisfied the adoption is in the child’s best interests, the court makes the adoption order. It’s final, subject only to an appeal.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Assuming the other parent’s consent isn’t needed. Even a parent who hasn’t been involved for years usually has to consent, or be given notice of a request to dispense with their consent.

• Leaving the child out of the conversation. Children aged 7 or older generally have to consent, and younger children’s feelings still matter. Talk with them in an age-appropriate way.

• Overlooking the lasting effects. Adoption ends the legal relationship with the birth parent who isn’t your spouse, including their ongoing support obligation and inheritance rights between them and the child. Be sure that’s what you want.

• Pressuring anyone to sign. Consents must be given freely, with the chance to get independent legal advice. Pressure can delay the process or cause problems later.

• Filing incomplete paperwork. Missing documents or errors in affidavits are a common reason applications are delayed or sent back.

• Using adoption to solve a parenting dispute. If what you really need is decision-making responsibility or parenting time, a parenting order may be the better tool.

Types of adoption in Ontario

Ontario recognizes several types of adoption. Each has its own requirements, but all of them end with a court order.

• Step-parent adoption. The spouse of a child’s parent, married or common-law, adopts the child. The application goes directly to court, usually without an adoption agency.

• Relative adoption. A grandparent, aunt, uncle or other relative adopts a child. Like a step-parent adoption, it goes directly to the court, which may ask for a home study.

• Private (licensee) adoption. A family adopts a child who isn’t related to them through a licensed adoption practitioner. It involves a home study, adoption training, ministry approval of the placement and follow-up visits before the court order.

• Public adoption. A family adopts a child in the care of a children’s aid society. There’s generally no fee, and the society assesses families and supports the placement.

• International adoption. A family adopts a child from another country through a licensed agency, following both Ontario’s rules and the rules of the child’s country.

• Adult adoption. An adult can be adopted with their own consent, often by a step-parent who raised them.

We focus on the legal steps of step-parent, relative and adult adoptions, and we support families going through private and public adoptions alongside their adoption practitioner or children’s aid society.

What to do next

Every adoption begins with understanding your family’s story. Whether you’re a step-parent who has been there all along or a relative stepping in when a child needs you, we’ll explain what’s involved and what to expect.

Book your free 30-minute confidential consultation – in person in Newmarket, by phone or by video – and we’ll help you take the first step.