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Re Graham Children [2020] NZFC 11085

Published 30 June 2022

Adoption application — 18-year-olds — fit and proper person — criminal history — consent — Adoption Act 1955, ss 2, 7, 10 & 11 — Tax Administration Act 1994 — Re CITH FC Palmerston North FAM-2011-054-180, 25 November 2011 — Tafili v Mann [2015] NZFC 122 — Re Penitani Children [2019] NZFC 9195. This was an application for the adoption of 18-year old twins by their stepfather. The biological parents of the twins had separated when the twins were six years old, and the father had subsequently died. The mother and stepfather had been together some eight years and had had a significant role in the twins' lives. The adoption application was to formalise this relationship. Section 2 of the Adoption Act ("the Act") gave jurisdiction for a court to determine an application for adoption of a person up to the age of 20. A comprehensive social worker report was prepared in accordance with s 10 of the Act, looking at the parties' situation and history including criminal record. The stepfather had been convicted and fined for failing to pay tax, which was acknowledged by the report which still recommended in favour of adoption. Cases dealing with a party's criminal history had been before the courts before, and it could not be said that a criminal conviction in and of itself was enough to disqualify someone from being a fit and proper person pursuant to s 11 of the Act. The Judge noted that the conviction did not affect the stepfather's ability to be a good parent. The criteria in s 11 was therefore met. In assessing whether the adoption would be in the twins' best interest, the Court considered that the stepfather had been part of their lives for a significant period of time, the twins were aware of the implications of an adoption in relation to their birth certificate, and both wanted the adoption to take place. The only consent that would have been required was that of their biological father, but that was not possible or required as he was dead. The Judge considered that all the statutory criteria were met to grant the application, and considered that a final adoption order was appropriate in the circumstances. The Judge made a final adoption order as well as a direction releasing the social worker's report to the children. Judgment Date: 10 December 2020.