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Statutes
Adoption and foster care are largely governed by state statutes. In Maryland, the official source of the state statutes is the Annotated Code of Maryland. All Maryland law libraries (list) and many Maryland public libraries (see SAILOR, Maryland's Online Public Information Network sponsored by Maryland public libraries) carry the Annotated Code of Maryland in print. For your convenience, this guide provides links to Maryland's family law statutes in a free web database maintained by Lexis-Nexis. Keep in mind, however, that the print version may be more useful in your research because it provides summaries of and citations to cases that have interpreted each statute. The free web version does not give summaries of case law.
Citations to selected Maryland Family
law statutes (available online from
Lexis-Nexis;) click the "+" next to Maryland Code
to see a list of titles):
For links to other titles in the Family
Law Article, see the Table of Contents to that article
using online version code from
Lexis-Nexis. For more information on researching
statutes, see Finding Statutes
and Searching for
Maryland Statutes When You Don't Have a Citation.
Court Rules & Court Information The Maryland court rules applying in adoption law cases are found in
Title 9
(available online from
Lexis-Nexis
click the "+" next to Maryland
Rules to see a list of titles). The court rules applying in foster care cases are found in
Title 11
(available online from
Lexis-Nexis
click the "+" next to Maryland
Rules to see a list of titles). The print version of the court rules, like the print version of the statutes, has the advantage of providing summaries of cases that interpret the rules.
The five largest Circuit Court jurisdictions in Maryland (Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Montgomery County, and Prince George's County) have Family Divisions that strive to provide a fair and efficient forum to resolve family legal matters in a problem-solving manner, with the goal of improving the lives of families and children who appear before the court. In Maryland's smaller cities and counties, Family Services Programs serve the same purposes. For more information on the Maryland Judiciary's Family Divisions and Family Services Programs, see the Maryland Judiciary Department of Family Administration home page.
Regulations The Maryland
Department of Human Resources makes regulations relating to the adoption and foster care. The Department's regulations are published officially
in Title 7 of COMAR (the Code of Maryland Administrative Regulations),
the print version of which is available in all Maryland law libraries (list)
and many Maryland public libraries (see SAILOR).
The Administration's regulations are also available electronically on the Division
of State Documents home page: Subtitle 2 - Social Services Administration and
Subtitle 5 - Private Child Placement Agencies. For more information on researching Maryland
administrative regulations, see Finding Regulations. Cases Because
family law is largely a matter of statute, you will probably want to look for
cases that interpret Maryland's family law statutes. The easiest way to do this
is to find the statutes that apply to your situation in the Annotated Code
of Maryland, then look at the case summaries that follow them. You can find
additional cases by reading books that explain Maryland family law and noting
the cases they cite. See "Books for More Help" below for a list of books to
get you started. Another method of finding cases is to search the Maryland
Digest, which is a subject index to Maryland case law. The topics "Adoption" "Infants" and "Parent and Child" would be good places to start in
the Maryland Digest. For more information on researching Maryland case
law, see Finding Maryland Case Law. Forms
Resources for More Help
The resources below may help you to understand Maryland adoption and foster care law. Keep in mind, however, that books that explain the law are no substitute for the law itself. You should always verify what the authors of these books say about the law by looking up the statutes, cases, and regulations the books cite. Some of these books may also include sample forms.
Source: This section developed by Sara Kelley, Librarian, Georgetown University Law Library, in partnership with the Maryland Legal Assistance Network. Last Review Date 5/17/05 (MLAN/SK)
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