Adoption act, 1998

• Enactment Date: 29 April 1998
• Act Number: 10

Number 10 of 1998
ADOPTION ACT, 1998
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Section 1. Interpretation. 2. Amendment of section 3 (definitions) of Principal Act. 3. Rules. 4. Amendment (new Part IA) of Principal Act. 5. Amendment of section 16 (hearing of applications) of Principal Act. 6. Amendment (new section 19A) of Principal Act. 7. Amendment of section 34 (restriction on making arrangements for adoption) of Principal Act. 8. False statements. 9. Offences generally. 10. Amendment of section 1 (definitions) of Act of 1991. 11. Amendment of section 2 (foreign adoptions effected in place of domicile of adopters) of Act of 1991. 12. Where adopters' domicile or residence is elsewhere than place of effecting foreign adoption. 13. Amendment of section 5 (foreign adoptions where adopters ordinarily resident in State) of Act of 1991. 14. Amendment of section 6 (Register of Foreign Adoptions) of Act of 1991. 15. Amendment of section 7 (directions of High Court in relation to entries in Register of Foreign Adoptions) of Act of 1991. 16. Amendment of section 9 (Proof of adoptions effected outside State) of Act of 1991. 17. Commencement. 18. Short title, collective citation and construction.
Acts Referred to Adoption Act, 1952 1952, No. 25 Adoption Act, 1964 1964, No. 2 Adoption Act, 1974 1974, No. 24 Adoption Act, 1988 1988, No. 30 Adoption Act, 1991 1991, No. 14 Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1991 Children (Amendment) Act, 1957 1957, No. 28 Guardianship of Infants Act, 1964 1964, No. 7 Health Act, 1970 1970, No. 1 Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851 14 & 15 Vict., c. 93 Status of Children Act, 1987 1987, No. 26
Number 10 of 1998
ADOPTION ACT, 1998
AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE LAW RELATING TO THE ADOPTION OF CHILDREN. [29th April, 1998]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:
	Interpretation.	1.—In this Act—
	“the Principal Act” means the Adoption Act, 1952 ;
	“the Act of 1991” means the Adoption Act, 1991 .
	Amendment of section 3 (definitions) of Principal Act.	2.—Section 3 of the Principal Act (as amended by section 4 of the Adoption Act, 1964 and section 6 of the Adoption Act, 1988 ) is hereby amended—
	(a) by the insertion of the following definition before the definition of “adoption order”:
	“‘adoption agency’ means a registered adoption society or a health board;”,
	(b) by the insertion of the following definition after the definition of “interim order”:
	“‘health board’ means a health board established under the Health Act, 1970 ;”,
	(c) by the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “the Minister”:
	“‘the Minister’ means the Minister for Health and Children;”,
	(d) by the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “parent”:
	“‘parent’, in respect of a child, means, unless the context otherwise requires, the mother or father or both of the child, whether or not they are married to one another;”,
	and
	(e) by the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “relative”:
	“‘relative’, in respect of a child, means a grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt of the child, whether of the whole blood, of the half-blood or by affinity and includes the spouse of any such person, relationship to the child being traced through the mother or the father.”.
	Rules.	3.—The Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following for section 5:
	“5.—The Board, with the consent of the Minister, may make rules—
	(a) for the regulation of its procedure or for any matter referred to in this Act as prescribed, and
	(b) governing the consultation that is required by this Act to be carried out with the father or the person who believes himself to be the father of a child before the child is placed for adoption or before an adoption order is made in respect of the child.
	5A.—Every rule made by the Board under section 5 and every regulation made by the Minister under section 7C shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the rule or regulation is passed by either House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the rule or regulation is laid before it, the rule or regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.”.
	Amendment (new Part IA) of Principal Act.	4.—The Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following after section 7:
	“PART IA.
	Placement for Adoption.
	Interpretation.
	7A.—In this Part, ‘father’, in respect of a child, means the father or the person who believes himself to be the father of the child.
	Restriction on placing child for adoption.
	7B.—Subject to sections 7E (3) (a) and 7F, an adoption agency shall not place a child for adoption unless the child has attained the age of four weeks.
	Care of child pending placement.
	7C.—(1) Where a child has been placed with a registered adoption society for adoption, the society may, in accordance with such regulations as the Minister may make respecting arrangements for the care of such children and for securing generally their welfare, arrange for appropriate care for the child, subject to the society's control and supervision, pending the placement of the child for adoption.
	(2) Section 2 of the Children (Amendment) Act, 1957 , shall not apply to the making of an arrangement by a registered adoption society under subsection (1) or to a person undertaking the care of a child under such an arrangement.
	Right of father who wishes to be consulted.
	7D.—(1) The father of a child may, by notice to the Board, advise the Board of his wish to be consulted in relation to—
	(a) a proposal by an adoption agency to place the child for adoption, or
	(b) an application by the mother or a relative of the child for an adoption order relating to the child.
	(2) A notice under subsection (1) shall be in writing, be in such form and contain such information as is prescribed and may be given to the Board before the birth of the child concerned.
	Pre-placement consultation procedure.
	7E.—(1) Where an adoption agency proposes to place a child for adoption—
	(a) the agency shall, in writing, in a form approved by the Board, request the Board to provide it with a copy of any notice received by the Board from the father of the child under section 7D (1), and
	(b) the Board shall—
	(i) as soon as practicable provide the notice, if any, to the agency, or
	(ii) if at the time of the request it has not received such a notice, so inform the agency and thereafter, if it receives such a notice, forthwith provide it to the agency.
	(2) Subject to this section and section 7F, where an adoption agency proposes to place a child for adoption and the identity of the father is known to the agency, the agency shall, before placing the child for adoption, take such steps as are reasonably practicable to consult the father for the purpose of—
	(a) informing him of the proposed placement,
	(b) explaining to him the legal implications of, and the procedures related to, adoption, and
	(c) ascertaining whether or not he objects to the proposed placement.
	(3) Where the father indicates to the adoption agency that—
	(a) he has no objection to the placement, the agency may at any time thereafter place the child for adoption, or
	(b) he objects to the proposed placement of the child for adoption, the agency shall—
	(i) notify the father and the mother in writing in the prescribed manner that it is deferring the placement for a period specified in the notice not being less than 21 days, commencing on the date of the notice, for the purpose of affording the father an opportunity to make an application to court under section 6A or section 11 (4) of the Guardianship of Infants Act, 1964 (as inserted by the Status of Children Act, 1987 ), and
	(ii) defer the placement in accordance with the notification.
	(4) Where an adoption agency receives a notice that an application referred to in subsection (3) (b) (i) has been made in respect of a child, the agency shall not place the child for adoption until the proceedings are concluded.
	(5) Where an adoption agency has not received—
	(a) a notice referred to in subsection (4) within the deferral period referred to in subsection (3) (b) (i), and
	(b) any indication from the father under subsection (3) (a) or (b) within 21 days after informing the father under subsection (2) (a) of the proposed placement of the child,
	the agency may, at any time thereafter at which it has not received a notice referred to in subsection (4), place the child for adoption.
	(6) A party to an application referred to in subsection (3) (b) (i) may apply to the court for, and the court may grant, such order, including an order for substituted service or for abridging the time fixed by rules of court for taking any step or doing any act in the proceedings, as the court deems appropriate to expedite the proceedings on the application in the best interests of the child.
	Where father not consulted.
	7F.—(1) If an adoption agency is unable to consult the father of a child for the purposes of section 7E (2), it shall, in a form approved by the Board, notify the Board to that effect and the Board may, where it is satisfied that the agency has taken such steps as are reasonably practicable to consult the father, authorise the agency to, and the agency at any time thereafter may, if it has not been contacted by the father indicating that he objects to the proposed placement...