Cooperative Adoption

Programs that specialize in facilitating adoptions in which there is an assumption of ongoing involvement on the part of the birth parent(s) with the child after the adoption has been finalized. The arrangements can range from informal, mutual understandings between the birth and adoptive families, to written, formal contracts. Written agreements are signed by all of the parties to the adoption before its finalization and specify the type and frequency of contact. The agreed-upon contact can range anywhere from an exchange between the adoptive and the birth parents of information about the child to cards, letters, and photos, to personal visits between the child and members of its birth family.