Are there additional risks with independent adoption?

Are there additional risks with independent adoption?

Jennifer Perry (Executive Director, Children's Action Network) gives expert video advice on: Do adoptive parents cover any of the birthmother's expenses?; What is "baby-buying"?; Should I be concerned about which hospital the birthmother chooses? and more...

There are some risks associated with independent adoption, primarily because there's not a single set of regulations that govern it, and the regulations change from state to state. Sometimes it can also be very costly. The parameters are important to protect both the birth mother and the adopted parent, as you certainly don't want to go through the long process of adoption and have the birth mother change her mind, because that's painful for both parties. You also want to have some sense of what the costs are going to be going in, so that the costs don't increase beyond a point where you, the adopted parents, are able to cover them, and you want to again protect both parties. Adoption is a sensitive and sometimes difficult process, so you want to make sure that everybody is covered.