The Florida Senate

63.022  Legislative intent.--

(1)  It is the intent of the Legislature to protect and promote the well-being of persons being adopted and their birth and adoptive parents and to provide to all children who can benefit by it a permanent family life, and, whenever possible, to maintain sibling groups.

(2)  The basic safeguards intended to be provided by this act are that:

(a)  The child is legally free for adoption.

(b)  The required persons consent to the adoption or the parent-child relationship is terminated by judgment of the court.

(c)  The required social studies are completed and the court considers the reports of these studies prior to judgment on adoption petitions.

(d)  All placements of minors for adoption are reported to the Department of Children and Family Services.

(e)  A sufficient period of time elapses during which the child has lived within the proposed adoptive home under the guidance of the department or a licensed child-placing agency.

(f)  All expenditures by intermediaries placing, and persons independently adopting, a minor are reported to the court and become a permanent record in the file of the adoption proceedings.

(g)  Social and medical information concerning the child and the birth parents is furnished by the birth parent when available and filed with the consent to the adoption when a minor is placed by an intermediary.

(h)  A new birth certificate is issued after entry of the adoption judgment.

(i)  At the time of the hearing the court is authorized to order temporary substitute care when it determines that the minor is in an unsuitable home.

(j)  The records of all proceedings concerning custody and adoption of children are confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1), except as provided in s. 63.162.

(k)  The birth parent, the adoptive parent, and the child receive the same or similar safeguards, guidance, counseling, and supervision in an intermediary adoption as they receive in an agency or department adoption.

(l)  In all matters coming before the court pursuant to this act, the court shall enter such orders as it deems necessary and suitable to promote and protect the best interests of the person to be adopted.

(m)  In dependency cases initiated by the department, where termination of parental rights occurs, and siblings are separated despite diligent efforts of the department, continuing postadoption communication or contact among the siblings may be ordered by the court if found to be in the best interests of the children.

History.--s. 2, ch. 73-159; s. 2, ch. 75-226; s. 13, ch. 77-147; s. 1, ch. 78-190; s. 1, ch. 80-296; s. 1, ch. 82-166; s. 1, ch. 87-16; s. 2, ch. 87-397; s. 18, ch. 90-360; s. 1, ch. 91-99; s. 2, ch. 92-96; s. 22, ch. 96-406; s. 172, ch. 97-101; s. 2, ch. 98-50.