SENATE, No. 4296
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED MARCH 24, 2025
Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH F. VITALE
District 19 (Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes voluntary post-adoption contact agreements.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Actconcerning adoption, amending P.L.1971, c.420 and P.L.1977, c.367, and supplementing Title 9 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.1971, c.420 (C.9:2-7.1) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. A grandparent or any sibling of a child residing in this State may make application before the Superior Court, in accordance with the Rules of Court, for an order for visitation. It shall be the burden of the applicant to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the granting of visitation is in the best interests of the child.
b. In making a determination on an application filed pursuant to this section, the court shall consider the following factors:
(1) The relationship between the child and the applicant;
(2) The relationship between each of the child's parents or the person with whom the child is residing and the applicant;
(3) The time which has elapsed since the child last had contact with the applicant;
(4) The effect that such visitation will have on the relationship between the child and the child's parents or the person with whom the child is residing;
(5) If the parents are divorced or separated, the time sharing arrangement which exists between the parents with regard to the child;
(6) The good faith of the applicant in filing the application;
(7) Any history of physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect by the applicant; and
(8) Any other factor relevant to the best interests of the child.
c. With regard to any application made pursuant to this section, it shall be prima facie evidence that visitation is in the child's best interest if the applicant had, in the past, been a full-time caretaker for the child.
d. This section shall not apply in cases of a child whose adoption has been finalized, where a post-adoption contact agreement has been approved pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The court shall direct that an application concerning a post-adoption contact agreement proceed as set forth in subsection e. of section 3 of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
(cf: P.L.1993, c.161, s.1)
2. Section 14 of P.L.1977, c.367 (C.9:3-50) is amended to read as follows:
14. a. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1993, c.345).
b. The entry of a judgment of adoption shall establish the same relationships, rights, and responsibilities between the child and the adopting parent as if the child were born to the adopting parent in lawful wedlock. For good cause, the court may direct the entry of judgment nunc pro tunc as of the date the action was instituted. In applying the intestate laws of this State, an adopted child shall have the same rights of inheritance as if born to the adopting parent in lawful wedlock.
c. Except as provided by section 3 of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill), [The] the entry of a judgment of adoption shall:
(1) terminate all parental rights and responsibilities of the parent towards the adoptive child except for a parent who is the spouse of the petitioner and except those rights that have vested prior to entry of the judgment of adoption;
(2) terminate all rights of inheritance under intestacy from or through the parent unless that parent is the spouse of the petitioner or that parent or other relative had died prior to the judgment of adoption; and
(3) terminate all rights of inheritance under intestacy from or through the child which existed prior to the adoption.
d. The court may order counseling for the adopting parents.
(cf: P.L.1993, c.345, s.13)
3. (New section) a. In an action for adoption, where the adopting parent, or both adopting parents if adopting jointly, consent to a voluntary post-adoption contact agreement providing for visitation, contact, or information exchange between the adoptive child and those relatives of the adoptive child as specified in the agreement, the court shall enter a separate consent order in addition to the judgment of adoption that provides for the enforcement of the post-adoption contact agreement.
b. (1) The adopting parent or parents shall file a proposed form of consent order, which shall specify by name all relatives entitled to contact under the agreement, with the court prior to the entry of the judgment of adoption. The proposed consent order shall be signed by the adopting parent or parents and all relatives named as parties to the agreement, except that if the agreement involves relatives of the adoptive child who are under the age of 18 years at the time of the adoption, such relatives shall be referred to by name but shall not be required to sign the agreement. The proposed consent order shall contain the terms of the agreement between the parties concerning each non-adopting party's rights to post-adoption contact, visitation, receipt of information, or other material terms.
(2) The proposed consent order shall set forth that the parties have entered into the agreement knowingly and voluntarily; that the parties believe the agreement is in the best interests of the child; that where an approved agency has made an evaluation, the approved agency believes the agreement is in the best interests of the child; that the parties understand that their surrender or consent to adoption is not conditioned upon future contact; that neither the surrender, consent, or judgment for adoption can be set aside due to failure to comply with the terms of the agreement; and that the exclusive remedy for an aggrieved party under the agreement is to seek an order to enforce, modify, or vacate its terms as determined to be in the best interests of the child.
c. Prior to the entry of a final judgment of adoption, the court shall inquire of the child to be adopted as to the child's willingness to participate in the post-adoption contact as set forth in the agreement. The child's wishes concerning post-adoption contact shall be solicited by the court and given due consideration if the child is of sufficient age and capacity to form an intelligent preference regarding such contact. Upon due consideration of the child's preferences, the court may modify the terms of the agreement and the proposed consent order in a manner that serves the best interests of the child. The court shall state on the record the reasons for any such modification.
d. (1) Upon a finding by the court that the agreement was entered into knowingly and voluntarily by all parties and that the agreement serves the best interests of the child, the court shall approve the agreement and enter the consent order, which shall also be referenced as having been approved in the final judgment of adoption.
(2) The non-adopting parties shall not be required to appear before the court at the final adoption hearing if:
(a) the court does not intend to modify any terms of the agreement pursuant to subsection c. of this section; and
(b) the court is able to confirm from the agreement that the non-adopting parties knowingly and voluntarily signed and executed the agreement.
(3) A copy of the order approving post-adoption contact shall be served on all relatives named in the agreement. Service upon relatives under the age of 18 years at the time of the adoption may be made care of that person's parent or guardian.
e. (1) In any future dispute between the parties concerning an agreement approved by the court pursuant to this section, jurisdiction and venue shall be had in the Family Part of the Chancery Division of the Superior Court in the vicinage where the judgment of adoption was entered. Application shall be made to the Surrogate of the vicinage in a sealed proceeding and the court shall have access to the original adoption file. If the agreement involves relatives of the adoptive child who are under the age of 18 years at the time of the adoption, such relatives shall, pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1977, c.367 (C.9:3-37) as persons affected by the adoption, acquire standing to enforce the agreement upon reaching 18 years of age.
(2) Upon the filing of a motion to enforce the agreement, the court shall determine, based on the best interests of the child, whether to enforce the order or a part thereof, to vacate the order or a part thereof, or to modify the order. In determining the best interests of the child, the court may refer to the factors set forth in subsections b. and c. of section 1 of P.L.1971, c.420 (C.9:2-7.1).
(3) Failure by the adopting parents to comply with the terms and conditions of an approved post adoption contact agreement that has been entered by the court pursuant to this section shall not be grounds for setting aside a judgment of adoption.
4. This act shall take effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment, except that the Administrative Director of the Courts and the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families may take such anticipatory action as may be necessary for the timely implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill amends State adoption law to allow for the validity and enforceability of voluntary post-adoption contact agreements (PACA) made between the child's adoptive parents and the child's biological or other relatives. A PACA is a written agreement that allows the birth parents and other family members to maintain contact or visitation with the child being adopted, or to receive information about the child. Such agreements are common in so-called "open adoptions."
Under current law, once an adoption is finalized, the birth parents and other specified persons have no legally enforceable right to have continued contact or visitation with the child, although the adoptive parents may agree to informal, voluntary out-of-court arrangements to allow continued contact. Since the enactment of the current Adoption Act, P.L.1977, c.367 (C.9:3-37 et seq.), the Legislature has continuously declined to change the law to allow open adoptions. However, in the view of the sponsor, allowing a more nuanced approach to open adoptions and PACAs will give family court judges a greater ability to tailor adoption arrangements that best serve the interests of the child, especially in cases where the adoption is contested or where there are strong existing attachments between the child and the child's biological relatives. More than half of all U.S. states, including New York and Pennsylvania, now allow open adoptions and PACAs in some form.
Under the bill, if the adoptive parents agree to a PACA, the agreement will be submitted to the court. The PACA may provide for contact not only with the birth parents but also with other relatives as specified in the agreement. If the court finds that the PACA was entered into knowingly and voluntarily, and serves the best interests of the child, the court will enter an order, separate from the judgment of adoption, specifying the terms of the PACA. In determining if the PACA serves the best interests of the child, where the child is of sufficient age and capacity to form an intelligent preference, the court will solicit the child's willingness to participate in post-adoption contact and give due consideration to the child's preferences. The Family Part of the Chancery Division of the Superior Court in the vicinage where the adoption was finalized will have jurisdiction to hear any disputes concerning the PACA, but under no circumstances will the adoptive parents' failure to abide by the PACA be grounds for setting aside the judgment of adoption.