Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB0103 Latest Draft

Bill / Engrossed Version Filed 04/04/2025

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1  AN ACT concerning civil law.
2  Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3  represented in the General Assembly:
4  Section 5. The Adoption Act is amended by changing
5  Sections 2 and 7 as follows:
6  (750 ILCS 50/2)    (from Ch. 40, par. 1502)
7  Sec. 2. Who may adopt a child.
8  A. Any of the following persons, who is under no legal
9  disability (except the minority specified in sub-paragraph
10  (b)) and who has resided in the State of Illinois continuously
11  for a period of at least 6 months immediately preceding the
12  commencement of an adoption proceeding, or any member of the
13  armed forces of the United States who has been domiciled in the
14  State of Illinois for 90 days, may institute such proceeding:
15  (a) A reputable person of legal age and of either sex,
16  provided that if such person is married or in a civil union
17  and has not been living separate and apart from his or her
18  spouse or civil union partner for 12 months or longer, his
19  or her spouse or civil union partner shall be a party to
20  the adoption proceeding, including a spouse or civil union
21  partner desiring to adopt a child of the other spouse or
22  civil union partner, in all of which cases the adoption
23  shall be by both spouses or civil union partners jointly;

 

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1  (b) A minor, by leave of court upon good cause shown; .
2  (c) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a) of this
3  subsection, a spouse or civil union partner is not
4  required to join in a petition for adoption for the
5  adoption of an adult if a petitioner is a former
6  stepparent of that adult, or to re-adopt a child after an
7  intercountry adoption if the spouse or civil union partner
8  did not previously adopt the child as set forth in
9  subsections (c) and (e) of Section 4.1 of this Act. For
10  purposes of this Section, "former stepparent" means a
11  person who was married to, or in a civil union with, the
12  legal parent of the adult seeking to be adopted, and the
13  marriage or civil union has ended.
14  B. The residence requirement specified in paragraph A of
15  this Section shall not apply to:
16  (a) an adoption of a related child;
17  (a-1) an adoption of a child previously adopted in a
18  foreign country by the petitioner;
19  (b) an adoption of a child placed by an
20  Illinois-licensed child welfare agency performing adoption
21  services;
22  (c) an adoption of an adult by a former stepparent; or
23  (d) an adoption of a child born in this State who has
24  resided continuously in this State since birth, or a child
25  who has continuously resided in this State for at least 6
26  months immediately preceding the commencement of the

 

 

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1  adoption proceeding, if:
2  (1) an Illinois-licensed child welfare agency
3  performing adoption services has acknowledged a
4  consent or surrender of one or both of the biological
5  or legal parents of the child under this Act and the
6  Child Care Act of 1969; or
7  (2) an authorized person under Section 10 has
8  acknowledged a consent of one or both of the
9  biological or legal parents of the child and an
10  Illinois-licensed child welfare agency performing
11  adoption services has counseled the biological or
12  legal parent or parents of the child as to the birth
13  parent rights and responsibilities under the Child
14  Care Act of 1969 and the rules adopted thereunder.
15  C. A person may commence an adoption proceeding for a
16  youth in care only if the youth in care is placed with the
17  petitioning person or persons by the Department of Children
18  and Family Services at the time the petition is filed, and the
19  Department has provided its consent to the adoption or has
20  otherwise approved the adoption.
21  Nothing in this subsection precludes any rights under
22  Section 15.1 of this Act. The Department shall adopt rules or
23  procedures or both as to what constitutes its approval of the
24  adoption under this subsection.
25  D. Nothing in this Section overrides the requirements
26  contained in Public Act 94-586.

 

 

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1  (Source: P.A. 102-139, eff. 1-1-22; revised 7-24-24.)
2  (750 ILCS 50/7)    (from Ch. 40, par. 1509)
3  Sec. 7. Process.
4  A. All persons named in the petition for adoption or
5  standby adoption, other than the petitioners and any party who
6  has previously either denied being a parent pursuant to
7  Section 12a of this Act or whose rights have been terminated
8  pursuant to Section 12a of this Act or under the Juvenile Court
9  Act of 1987, but including the person sought to be adopted,
10  shall be made parties defendant by name, and if the name or
11  names of any such persons are alleged in the petition to be
12  unknown such persons shall be made parties defendant under the
13  name and style of "All whom it may concern". In all such
14  actions petitioner or his attorney shall file, at the office
15  of the clerk of the court in which the action is pending, an
16  affidavit showing that the defendant resides or has gone out
17  of this State, or on due inquiry cannot be found, or is
18  concealed within this State, so that process cannot be served
19  upon him, and stating the place of residence of the defendant,
20  if known, or that upon diligent inquiry his place of residence
21  cannot be ascertained, the clerk shall cause publication to be
22  made in some newspaper published in the county in which the
23  action is pending. If there is no newspaper published in that
24  county, then the publication shall be in a newspaper published
25  in an adjoining county in this State, having a circulation in

 

 

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1  the county in which such action is pending. In the event there
2  is service on any of the parties by publication, the
3  publication shall contain notice of pendency of the action,
4  the name of the person to be adopted and the name of the
5  parties to be served by publication, and the date on or after
6  which default may be entered against such parties. Neither the
7  name of petitioners nor the name of any party who has either
8  surrendered said child, has given their consent to the
9  adoption of the child, or whose parental rights have been
10  terminated by a court of competent jurisdiction shall be
11  included in the notice of publication. The Clerk shall also,
12  within 10 ten (10) days of the first publication of the notice,
13  send a copy thereof by mail, addressed to each defendant whose
14  place of residence is stated in such affidavit. The
15  certificate of the Clerk that he sent the copies pursuant to
16  this section is evidence that he has done so. Except as
17  provided in this section pertaining to service by publication,
18  all parties defendant shall be notified of the proceedings in
19  the same manner as is now or may hereafter be required in other
20  civil cases or proceedings, except that service of process
21  need not be directed to a minor defendant under 14 years of age
22  for whom a guardian ad litem has been or will be appointed
23  pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection B of Section 13 of this
24  Act. Nothing in the provisions of the preceding sentence
25  stating that service of process need not be directed to a minor
26  defendant under 14 years of age for whom a guardian ad litem

 

 

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1  has been or will be appointed is intended to override any
2  provision of this Act which relates to information to which an
3  adopted person is entitled under Section 18.1 of this Act. Any
4  party defendant who is of age of 14 years or upward may waive
5  service of process by entering an appearance in writing. The
6  form to be used for publication shall be substantially as
7  follows: "ADOPTION NOTICE - STATE OF ILLINOIS, County of ....,
8  ss. - Circuit Court of .... County. In the matter of the
9  Petition for the Adoption of ...., a ..male child. Adoption
10  No. ..... To-- .... (whom it may concern or the named parent)
11  Take notice that a petition was filed in the Circuit Court of
12  .... County, Illinois, for the adoption of a child named .....
13  Now, therefore, unless you ...., and all whom it may concern,
14  file your answer to the Petition in the action or otherwise
15  file your appearance therein, in the said Circuit Court of
16  ...., County, Room ...., ...., in the City of ...., Illinois,
17  on or before the .... day of ...., a default may be entered
18  against you at any time after that day and a judgment entered
19  in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. Dated, ....,
20  Illinois, .... ...., Clerk. (Name and address of attorney for
21  petitioners.)
22  B. A minor defendant who has been served in accordance
23  with this Section may be defaulted in the same manner as any
24  other defendant.
25  C. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this or
26  any other law, and in addition to the notice requirements of

 

 

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1  any law pertaining to persons other than those specified in
2  this subsection, the persons entitled to notice that a
3  petition has been filed under Section 5 of this Act shall
4  include:
5  (a) any person adjudicated by a court in this State to
6  be the father of the child;
7  (b) any person adjudicated by a court of another state
8  or territory of the United States to be the father of the
9  child, when a certified copy of the court order has been
10  filed with the Putative Father Registry under Section 12.1
11  of this Act;
12  (c) any person who at the time of the filing of the
13  petition is registered in the Putative Father Registry
14  under Section 12.1 of this Act as the putative father of
15  the child;
16  (d) any person who is recorded on the child's birth
17  certificate as the child's parent, unless a court of
18  competent jurisdiction has determined the person is not
19  the parent of the child or has terminated the person's
20  parental rights father;
21  (e) any person who is openly living with the child or
22  the child's mother at the time the proceeding is initiated
23  and who    holds out the child as that person's child, unless
24  a court of competent jurisdiction has determined the
25  person is not the parent of the child or has terminated the
26  person's parental rights is holding himself out to be the

 

 

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1  child's father;
2  (f) any person who has been identified as the child's
3  parent father by the mother in a written, sworn statement,
4  including an Affidavit of Identification as specified
5  under Section 11 of this Act, unless a court of competent
6  jurisdiction has determined the person is not the parent
7  of the child or has terminated the person's parental
8  rights;
9  (g) any person who was married to the child's mother
10  on the date of the child's birth or within 300 days prior
11  to the child's birth, unless a court of competent
12  jurisdiction has determined the person is not the parent
13  of the child or has terminated the person's parental
14  rights.
15  The sole purpose of notice under this Section shall be to
16  enable the person receiving notice to appear in the adoption
17  proceedings to present evidence to the court relevant to
18  whether the consent or surrender of the person to the adoption
19  is required pursuant to Section 8 of this Act. If the court
20  determines that the consent or surrender of the person is not
21  required pursuant to Section 8, then the person shall not be
22  entitled to participate in the proceedings or to any further
23  notice of the proceedings.
24  (Source: P.A. 97-988, eff. 1-1-13.)
25  Section 99. Effective date. This Section and the changes
26  made to Section 2 of the Adoption Act take effect upon becoming

 

 

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1  law.

 

 

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