[mcut]

I know the lawyer's name that handled my adoption, 46 years ago... One partner is deceased, the other does not have a clue and thinks maybe the family might have records. My adoptive parents are deceased. Do I have a right to those records, or if I call a family member can they tell me "no?"
Any help appreciated...e

[icis]

As an Illinois adoptee you have the option to petition the court in the county the adoption was finalized. The court will appoint you a Confidential Intermediary who will be given a court order to complete a search fro your birth family. You are not personally provided with the records however the CI is with the court order.

[dl]

Was this a private adoption with only an attorney, or was an agency involved? If so, do you know the name of the agency? I was adopted in Illinois, finalized in 1952. The agency that handled my adoption, and many other agencies, have a "Post Adoptive Services Department". The social worker at my agency has been wonderful and I recently exchanged letters with my bfather.

Thesearchguru has also posted threads with helpful information for searching in each state. Here's the link for the Illinois information.

Correction: Sorry, outdated link - current link and information below

Best of Luck to you!

[dl]

Sorry, that link was incorrect. Here's the information posted by thesearchguru and the correct link: Illinois Searching Resources

Illinois Searching Resources
WELCOME TO THE SEARCH AND REUNION MESSAGE BOARD!

If you know what adoption agency handled your adoption contact them for information from your adoption file that will help you with your search. If you were a private adoption or do not know the name of the adoption agency contact this office:

Illinois Department of Children and Family Services
406 East Monroe Street, Station 25
Springfield, IL 62701-1498
(217) 524-2422
Fax: (217) 524-3966
World Wide Web: http://www.state.il.us/dcfs
E-mail: ddeleonardo@idcfs.state.il.us

INFORMATION THAT IS AVAILABLE IN YOUR STATE:

“Non-identifying information” is information from your adoption file about your birth parents. It generally includes ages, marital status, states of birth, education, religion, occupations and a physical description of your birth parents. It should also include the reason for relinquishment and may include information about your aunts, uncles and grandparents. It is called “non-identifying information” because it does not include any identifying information such as names, addresses or social security numbers. If you already have your non-identifying information but it is information given to your adoptive parents at the time of your adoption you should re-apply for the non-identifying information. Agencies are giving out much more comprehensive information now that they did in the past.

“Illinois Adoption Registry and Medical Information Exchange”

Illinois Adoption Registry
Illinois Department of Public Health
535 West Jefferson Street
Springfield, IL 62761
(217) 557-5159
Toll Free: (877) 323-5299
World Wide Web: http://www.idph.state.il.us/vital/iladoptreg.htm
E-mail: mailus@idph.state.il.us

“Confidential Intermediary Program” is a service sponsored by the state of adoption that will search for and locate the birth family member that you are looking for. This program will make the first contact but if the person contacted declines contact the agency will not give you the information to contact them yourself. There is usually a fee associated with this service through the governing agency of adoptions for your state of adoption. To request this service contact this office:

Midwest Adoption Center
3158 Des Plaines River Road, Suite 120
Des Plaines, IL 60018
(847) 298-9096
Fax: (847) 298-9097
World Wide Web: http://www.macadopt.org
E-mail: macadopt@aol.com

See new update on the laws in Illinois as submitted by Brandy Hagz at: http://forums.adoption.com/showthre...4028#post274028


Many blessings on your search journey,
Colleen Buckner
The Search Guru
MODERATOR for Search and Reunion Message Board

http://www.adoptionforums.com
http://www.adoptionchat.com
http://www.adoptionlists.com
http://www.adoption.com
http://www.adopting.org
http://www.adoptionregistry.com

[mcut]

Thank you, thank you, for all your help. I have done all that, and have already written to the Judge,and contacted Midwest Adoption Center. I even have my birth records being forwarded to me, altho they are deleting any ** info...
I am a tad impatient, even tho I just found out I ws adopted a month ago! (see my story in How I found out)
I was curious to see if a phone call would generate any info- I have seen some people post that they have gotten atty. records.

Thank you again...

[hawaiiboogie]

My friend is searching for her daughter and I have been helping her. She does know that her daughters adoption was not finalized in florida and she does have a certificate number. She thinks that the last name was Brown. Her daughter was born in St. Petersburg Florida Sept. 18, 1966. Please help me She is so sad, annd she does not want to hurt anyone she just wants to know that she is alright. We have been looking for many years and she gets more depressed every year. Please Help if you can . Her daughter was not to be told. Please help me if you can. Thank You and Good luck! Kathy