An adoption is where an individual assumes custody of another’s child. The most common adoption is a stepparent adoption where a stepparent adopts his or her spouses’ children. In addition, a child can be adopted from outside of the family in an independent or private adoption. The Law Offices of Richard J. McAndrew would be happy to provide you a free initial consultation to discuss your adoption.

A guardian is a person that exercises custody of a child after the parents die or are physically or mentally unable to take care of their children. Parents can make provisions to protect their children in the event that the parents untimely die by appointing guardians for the children. In addition, non-parents can seek to become guardians of children after the parents die or become unable to act as parents. We would be happy to provide a free initial consultation to discuss your legal rights regarding guardianship.