Do you enjoy the legal profession? Do you want to make a positive difference in the lives of families? If so, you should consider becoming an adoption attorney. As an adoption attorney, you can help children and families with the adoption process. You can be their right-hand legal aid as they maneuver through the complicated adoption laws. If this is indeed your dream, you should take the following steps to achieve that goal.
Instructions
1. Obtain your Juris Doctorate: Your first step is to obtain your Juris Doctorate degree from an accredited law school. During law school, focus on courses like family and adoption law, mediation and negotiations. This will give you a good understanding of the basics of adoption law and improve your communication skills. Once you have your J.D., you can sign up for Continuing Legal Education (CLE) courses on adoption law. For a list of U.S.-based law schools, visit the Find Law Website. For a list of list of CLE courses, visit the American Bar Association's Website. See Resources for links.
2. Get Some Experience: It is important to gain experience in adoption law before setting out on your own. Some of the various ways to gain experience in adoption law include doing an internship with a firm specializing in family or adoption law, signing up to do pro bono adoption work under an experienced attorney or sitting in on some of the client meetings and court cases regarding adoption law that a partner in your practice may be handling. There are even training programs available in the specific area of adoption law that you can take.
3. Find a Mentor: If you are just starting work in adoption law, you should have someone advising you to make sure that you are giving your clients the best representation possible. A mentor can also help ensure that you are learning as much as you can along the way regarding even ancillary topics in adoption law. Your local bar association can help you find a mentor, or you can ask a friend or colleague to mentor you. Another option is to join the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and find a mentor there. See Resources and References for links.
4. Join the Bar Association Section on Adoption Law. The American Bar Association and your state and local bar associations have interest groups or sections on family law, if not adoption law in particular. Join these bar sections, network with other attorneys and subscribe to their publications on adoption law. Not only will this networking gain you clients, but you will learn a lot about the particulars of adoption law. See Resources for link to the ABA.
5. Advertise. If you are already in legal practice, spread the word among existing clients and colleagues that you are branching out into adoption law. Update your brochures, Website information and general marketing information to include adoption law as one of your practice areas. Also be sure to contact the bar association to add you to its lawyer referral list in the area of adoption law.
6. Keep Yourself Up-to-Date on Adoption Law: Read journals and magazines that focus on adoption or family law in general. Subscribe to listservs that send out updates on the law and current cases affecting this legal field. Make sure you stay up to date on the news so you can best help you clients. One magazine to check out is Adoptive Families Magazine. See References for link.
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