Welcome to Gulf Coast Adoptions. Clay H. Whittaker is a kinship and relative adoption attorney in Pensacola, Florida. Together with his wife Cheryl, they founded Gulf Coast Adoptions to serve families in the adoption process.
Being adoptive parents ourselves, we saw a need for greater communication in the adoption process. That’s what sets us apart as a kinship and relative adoption attorney. We take the time to explain the process and answer all your questions. With flat fees, there’s no additional cost to talk with our caring team for hours.
Help from a Kinship and Relative Adoption Attorney
If you are a grandparent, aunt, uncle, sibling or other relative, adoption may be the loving choice for a child. If you choose Gulf Coast Adoptions, you have a caring team taking care of the process for you.
Our team can:
- Explain relative adoption and how it is different than other types of adoptions
- Talk about things you need to consider as you make decisions
- Answer your questions
- Prepare the petition for adoption
- Gather the important paperwork like the UCCJEA affidavit, birth certificate and consent
- File your petition and represent you at your hearing
We handle cases that involve and do not involve the Florida Department of Children and Families. Whatever your situation, we are happy to speak with you about whether a relative adoption is the best choice for a child. We’ll talk about what’s involved in the process and how lawyer Clay Whittaker and the team at Gulf Coast Adoptions may assist you.
Understanding Relative Adoptions in Florida
Florida uses a streamlined process for relative adoptions in Florida. Relative adoptions are some of the most common adoptions. While there is still a great deal of paperwork needed, a relative adoption typically proceeds without a home study.
A relative adoption creates a legal parent-child relationship between the adoptive relative and the child. When the adoption is complete, the parent and child have the full rights of their new legal relationship.
Benefits of Relative Adoptions
Benefits of relative adoption include:
- Stability for the child, a sense of permanency and commitment
- Continuity of family relationships through generations
- Keeping siblings together
- Ability to allow the birth parent to maintain some level of contact with the child, if the adopting parent chooses
- Access to health insurance, the ability to direct medical care
- Control over the child’s education and access to records
- Inheritance rights
A relative adoption may be greatly beneficial to the child and to the entire family.
Who qualifies for kinship adoption in Florida?
You may file for adoption using the streamlined kinship process if you are the:
- Grandparent, grandmother or grandfather
- Aunt
- Uncle
- Adult sibling, adult brother or sister
- Great-grandparent
- Great aunt or great uncle
The law includes any person related by blood to the third degree of consanguinity as a family for kinship adoption.
Can an aunt or uncle adopt their niece or nephew in Florida?
An aunt or uncle can adopt their niece or nephew in Florida. The birth parents must consent to the adoption unless they have failed to provide emotional or financial support, or they have had their rights terminated.
Are relatives ever too old to adopt in Florida?
There is no age where a relative is too old to adopt in Florida. On the contrary, Florida law recognizes that older relatives may be in the best position to be the legal parent of a child.
What does it cost to hire you as a relative adoption attorney?
We charge a flat fee for relative adoption attorney services. This keeps costs down. You can talk to us for as long as you like, knowing that the cost will never increase. Also, your adoption may qualify for an adoption tax credit.
Consultations Available – Talk to a Kinship and Relative Adoption Attorney
From our offices in Pensacola, we handle kinship and relative adoptions throughout Florida. We know the law and the system. Gulf Coast Adoptions is your full-service law firm, working on your behalf with unconditional respect.
Start with a free consultation with a kinship and relative adoption attorney in Pensacola. Our team answers calls 24/7, so you’ll never talk to a call screener. Call or message us today.