On April 1, 2008, the United States became a signatory to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Inter-Country Adoption, establishing international standards for intercountry adoptions to prevent the abduction, sale, or trafficking of children. Since that time the rules for adoption under the Immigration Nationality Act for certain immigrant children have been significantly complicated.

This webinar seeks to provide practitioners with a practical overview of how the Hague Convention changes the rules of adoption and will cover the following topics:

* The New Landscape: Convention Adoptions, Non-convention Adoptions and Family Petitions (I-130 after the ratification)
* How does the Intercountry Adoption Act impact adoptions for children residing in the US?
* How does the Intercountry Adoption Act affect legal custody for children residing in the US?
* What is the role of the immigration attorney for Hague Convention Adoptions?
* Central Authorities: How to identify them and how to work with them.
* Review of the flow chart provided by the US Central Authority for Incoming and Outgoing Cases
* Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and the Hague Adoption Convention

Deadline to Register: 9/13/10

Moderator:
Angie Junck, ILRC Staff Attorney
At the ILRC, Angie specializes in the intersection between the immigration and child welfare, juvenile justice, and criminal justice systems. She is an author of various ILRC publications, including Defending Immigrants in the Ninth Circuit, Remedies and Strategies for Permanent Resident Clients, and the new Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and Other Immigration Options for Children & Youth. At the ILRC, she coordinates the Immigrant Youth Project to provide advocacy on behalf of immigrant youth who are at risk for entry into the dependency, delinquency, and deportation systems. She provides trainings, technical assistance, and written materials to immigrant youth and their families, as well as to decision makers and service providers, such as social workers, juvenile justice officials, legislators, judges, and community based groups and advocates.

Presenters:
Irene Steffas, Steffas & Associates, P.C.
Ms. Steffas and her firm represents adoptive parents, stepparents, biological parents, adopted children and adoption agencies with their adoptions issues. Through their expertise in immigration law and extensive network of foreign attorneys, the attorneys of Steffas & Associates, P.C. are able to find solutions to the unique challenges faced by those who are working towards an international adoption or those who have adopted or wish to adopt. Steffas & Associates, P.C. specializes in the following types of adoptions: Hague Convention Adoptions, InterCountry Adoptions, and Domestic Adoptions.

Karen Law, Law Offices of Karen S. Law, PLC.
Ms. Law practices law in the Washington, D.C. area. Her practice is limited to adoption and immigration law for adopted children. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law in 1985. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Virginia Women Attorneys Association. Ms. Law assists adoption clients throughout the U.S. and writes and speaks on intercountry adoption for national audiences.