Overseas Adoption Advice for Prospective Parents

April 2004

PEOPLE who think adopting a baby from abroad is the best way of becoming parents should be wary of the many pitfalls, a leading law firm has warned.

Fiona McReddie of Crutes Law Firm, which has offices in Newcastle, Middlesbrough and Carlisle, warned prospective parents there are lessons to be learned from cases such as Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie and her son Maddox.

Fiona said: “Earlier this year it emerged that the star’s adopted Cambodian son Maddox may have been sold by his poverty-stricken mother, and might not be a genuine orphan.

“The American agent who arranged the adoption is facing charges of visa fraud and money laundering. She has been accused of arranging adoptions of children who were not orphans and paying poor Cambodian women to give up their babies for American couples.

“There have, over the past few years, been more and more reports coming out of Cambodia that poor people are selling their children to “adoption agents” or “procurers” from orphanages – sometimes for as little as $12.40 (around £8).”

Fiona added that some people looking to adopt a Cambodian baby will pay thousands of dollars in adoption fees.

She said: “Over the past two decades it has become more accessible for couples to adopt children from abroad, most notably from Romania. Cambodia, since Ms Jolie’s apparent happy adoption of her son, has also become a popular destination for people.

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