[KyliesMommy]

Hi everyone,

I'm mostly a lurker here but do have a question.

Does anyone know at what point a potential birthmother can sign TPR? This is not a foster situation, it is a potential domestic private/direct.

Thank you so much!

[KatiesEd-dad]

Ours took a little over 2 months. We took DD home on August 3, the TPR hearing was October 4 and then there is a 21 day appeal period after that if they can prove fraud or coercion. Ours actually got done fairly quickly since there wasn't a back log of cases in our county. For Wayne county residents the wait can be longer.

[KyliesMommy]

Thank you so much.

One question...did the birthmom sign TPR prior to that so you received custody and then the actual hearing?

Thank you again!

[lovemy2boys]

Ours was similar to Ed's...I believe it was week 7 when she signed...

I'm not sure what the minimum is, but remember that it IS a minimum and an expectant mom can take however long she needs to make her decision. That's why ours was 7 weeks...the agency wanted to make sure our boys' mom had enough time to be sure of her decision...they didn't want to rush her.

And the way ours worked (through an agency) was that we were licensed for foster care so our son could be placed with us immediately as opposed to waiting for TPR...It wasn't a general "foster care" license per se, but a foster to adopt type license...

Anyway, after TPR, there was the 21 day appeal period like Ed mentioned...Then about 3 weeks later, WE went to court for the first time...

Hope this helps!

[nikkianni]

TPR was signed the day DD was released from the hospital, then DD's birthparents went before the judge a month later to sign off officially. After that Michigan has a six month waiting period before finalization.
At least, that's how it worked for us.

[KyliesMommy]

Thank you so very much!

Our DD was adopted from TX and there was a 48 hour minimum before TPR could be signed. So this is all new to me for Michigan.

Thanks again!

[Stormster]

We did a Michigan adoption. Dad signed prior to birth, mom 72 hours after. We took the baby home from the hospital.

[HappyHopefulMommy]

We had a failed adoption from Michigan and we live in CA. We were told to be prepared to spend 6 - 10 weeks there. I do not remember details, but it had something to do with a court date where mom "would" sign in from of a judge. And we would not have been able to leave with the baby until that had happened.

[crystalp]

I have heard that the "M" states can be very hard for the adoptive parents. Wait times can be really long. I know of a lady in my state that had to stay in Michigan for 3-4 months while they figured out all the legal stuff. Hopefully that was the exception, not the rule.

[CeltiaSkye]

We're matched with a p-bmom in Michigan, we live in Indiana. The bf can sign before the baby is born. The bmom will sign papers giving us temporary custody so we can take the baby from the hospital. We've been told that 7-10 days after that will be the TPR hearing (that's the projected timeframe for Oakland county, it can be longer elsewhere). In Michigan the mother has to go before the court for TPR, she can't just sign papers. After TPR it should take about 2-3 days for Michigan to complete the ICPC paperwork and send it to Indiana, then 2-3 days for Indiana to complete their portion. Once that's complete we can leave the state. So all total it's a 2-3 week stay. Fortunately I have family in the area so we're going to stay with them rather than having to live in a hotel for 3 weeks. Then a six month period before finalization.

[journeytolily]

We just returned from MI right before Thanksgiving, with our new baby girl.

The bmom signed the temporary custody papers right before leaving the hospital, at day three, and we then took the baby to our hotel. The court hearing was 2 weeks later, where both bmom and bdad's rights were terminated. Our agency sent in the ICPC paperwork, and it took TWO days for our approval, from both MI and SC! We were free to leave at that point.

There is a 21 day period where the TPR can be overturned, but only if fraud or coercion can be proven. In our case, things appeared to be very clear-cut at the hearing, so we are not very worried about it. We only have 4 days to go on that!

[Stormster]

Originally Posted by CeltiaSkye

We're matched with a p-bmom in Michigan, we live in Indiana. The bf can sign before the baby is born. The bmom will sign papers giving us temporary custody so we can take the baby from the hospital. We've been told that 7-10 days after that will be the TPR hearing (that's the projected timeframe for Oakland county, it can be longer elsewhere). In Michigan the mother has to go before the court for TPR, she can't just sign papers. After TPR it should take about 2-3 days for Michigan to complete the ICPC paperwork and send it to Indiana, then 2-3 days for Indiana to complete their portion. Once that's complete we can leave the state. So all total it's a 2-3 week stay. Fortunately I have family in the area so we're going to stay with them rather than having to live in a hotel for 3 weeks. Then a six month period before finalization.

Our experience exactly! (But NY instead of Indiana)

[KatiesEd-dad]

Originally Posted by KyliesMommy

Thank you so much.

One question...did the birthmom sign TPR prior to that so you received custody and then the actual hearing?

Thank you again!

The birthmom signed a temporary custody form assigning us physical custody of the baby. This way we were able to put her on our insurance and make medical decisions for her. This is different than termination of parental rights hearing. If my memory serves me correctly, the petition for adoption must be filed with the court withing 2 weeks of placement. The court is supposed to schedule a TPR hearing within 30 days of that petition for adoption. It can take longer due to case backlogs. Once the parents rights are terminated, they have 21 days to appeal if they can prove fraud or coercion. After that there is 6 months of court supervision in which you must have 2 home visits by a designee of the court (usually the CW from your agency). After six month of court supervision, you can petition the court to finalize the adoption which can be done by a court hearing or by mail.

From an adoptive parents point of view, Michigan is one of the tougher states and we spent almost the entire time (from August 3rd to October 4th) on pins and needles. I understand the reasoning for it. They really want to make sure the birth parents are making an informed decision and aren't pressured. Although it wasn't easy, we were at least comforted by the fact that everyone had plenty of time to think about it and the fact that they were still firm in their decision 6 weeks later meant that they would probably never try to contest.

Hope this helps.

[fiona-c]

With our daughter the birthmother did a "Direct Placement" which we were given custody (not an agency). She later went before a judge and signed the TPR papers. We were in state then and took our daughet home from the hospital.

But be careful in Michigan. The father/birth father HAS to be notified. If he is not notified he can petition the court for custody and get custody - before the adoption petition is filed (in our case) but after the birthmother's rights are terminated. And if she names the wrong guy.... does not matter. The biological father must receive notification. Guess how we know this....

[viannqueen]

We adopted from Michigan (Oakland County). A TPR hearing was scheduled by the court in front of a judge about two weeks after the baby's birth. From what I've heard two weeks is pretty good, many counties are much busier and it can take many more weeks. All during this time prior to TPR's the birth parents may change their mind.

We ended up in a messy legal battle which was a nightmare. I'm probably the one Crystal is referring to as I spent almost four months in Michigan last winter. Longest winter of my life. We were definately on the extreme side of things but TPR's were not signed for 3.5 months after birth. Probably the soonest you could expect them to be would be two weeks after birth. PM me if you have any questions.

btw- my DD is also named Kylie!