Statute 10-7501-1.2

Oklahoma Adoption Code 10-7501-1.2, A , 7 Encourage prebirth planning for adoption as a means of facilitating adoption of a child into a permanent family as soon as possible. To that end, the Oklahoma Adoption Code provides for a prebirth notice of a plan for adoption and for procedures bywhich a putative father may give his consent or otherwise respond to the notice;

Comments: So "prebirth notice of a plan for adoption" is a good place to start in the most recent case in Oklahoma. There was no prebirth notice of a plan for adoption. One has to ask, in the case of Baby Girl vs Adoptive Couple, what was the need for a prebirth adoption plan?

There was no imminent crisis, neglect, lack of support, unfitness, or circumstance that would require a prebirth plan of adoption. The point here is that the code is written to encourage a prebirth plan for adoption. Why? If the child has no home or family, i.e. the mom is incarcerated giving birth and is facing a life sentence, her family is dead and the putative father has similar circumstances, maybe a prebirth adoption plan would be in order. How often does the circumstance of a child needing a home warrant a prebirth adoption plan? That might be a good research project for someone.

Why is the code written to favor such a prebirth plan for adoption? This certainly opens the door for those adoption "planners" out there to get busy and start calculating how much someone would pay for a prebirth plan if the marketing and paperwork were all in place.

So how did this code get written this way? Who came up with the idea of prebirth adoption planning, introduced it and got the support to pass it into law? Those answers might be very interesting. My guess is there was no adoptee involved in introducing that bill to add that code.

The rest of item 7 clearly indicates that the code also provides for procedures by which a putative father "may" give his consent or otherwise respond to the notice. I'm wondering what that procedure is. Maybe as we read through and learn this together we will find that somewhere else in the code.

As I conclude this blog, I would like to point out, this is item #7 of 10 items listed under 10-7501-1.2. Two sentences long which raises more questions to me than reasonable understanding of why an adoption code would solicit for prebirth adoption planning and how the putative father is notified to give consent or respond.

So much more to come. All comments and research with citings are welcome!