Court Jurisdiction and Venue for Adoption Petitions

Adoption is a legal process for making a child a permanent member of a family other than the child's birth family. This legal process falls under the jurisdiction of a court of law in the state where the adoption occurs.

Jurisdiction

Every state maintains a court system in which different courts are designated to hear specific types of cases. That designation is what is meant by the term "jurisdiction." For example, criminal cases will be tried in a State criminal court. Adoption is a civil procedure, and at the State court level, certain civil courts are given jurisdiction over adoption cases. A person who seeks to adopt a child must file his or her petition for adoption with the appropriate court.

All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands specify in their statutes one or more types of court that have jurisdiction over adoption cases.

Examples of Jurisdiction

State courts are organized in a hierarchy of courts of original jurisdiction, which is the level at which cases are first heard, and appellate courts, which hear cases that have been appealed from lower courts. The names given to these courts vary from state to state. All adoption cases commence with a petition filed with the appropriate court of original jurisdiction.

The types of court designated as the court of original jurisdiction reflect the organization of the state court system, and the names can include:

• Circuit court, used in 11 States¹
• District court, used in 8 States and 2 Territories²
• Superior court, used in 7 States, 1 Territory, and the District of Columbia³
• Probate court, used in 8 States⁴
• Family court, used in 5 States⁵
• Juvenile court, used in 3 States⁶