How Our Fellows Can Help Other Adoption & ART Professionals

Fellows of the Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys (AAAA) are well-positioned to be of unique assistance to other adoption and assisted reproductive technology (ART) professionals. By virtue of being a Fellow, an outside professional will know that the attorney has been rigorously vetted for competence and ethics.

AAAA is made up of approximately 470 attorneys, law professors, and judges who are recognized as Fellows and practice adoption law, assisted reproductive technology (ART) law, or both. Located around the globe – including the United States, Canada, Australia, Argentina, Israel, and the United Kingdom – Fellows of AAAA are considered legal thought leaders and are a highly-vetted, experienced group. AAAA Fellows use best legal practices and have helped thousands of clients through their family building journeys. Admission to AAAA is a selective process that requires no less than five years of legal practice, at least 50 adoption or ART proceedings, a referral for admission by a current AAAA member, and rigorous review for high ethical standards and competency by the AAAA Board of Trustees.

Non-AAAA attorneys, adoption agencies, fertility clinics, ART programs, other adoption and ART professionals, as well as judges, media professionals, conference planners, continuing legal education program planners, legislative aides, and numerous others, can utilize AAAA Fellows in many ways including, but not limited to, the following:

• Refer clients/patients to AAAA Fellows for legal services in adoption and ART matters.
• Retain AAAA Fellows as general counsel to adoption agencies, ART programs, and fertility clinics.
• Use the AAAA Directory to locate AAAA Fellows all over the United States and abroad to serve as consultants or consulting counsel in a case.
• Find a AAAA Fellow to be on the other side of an interstate adoption.
• Many AAAA Fellows are willing and qualified to serve as expert witnesses in the areas of adoption and ART. Expert witnesses often are needed in legal malpractice, medical malpractice, and personal injury cases (especially those in which someone may have lost their fertility).
• AAAA Fellows can assist with amicus briefs and obtain AAAA approval to file an amicus brief on behalf of AAAA.
• AAAA Fellows can also assist with legislative matters and obtain AAAA participation in lobbying efforts.
• Legislative professionals might seek the guidance of AAAA Fellows regarding proposed legislation or regulations regarding adoption and ART.
• Many AAAA Fellows assist families in locating an adoptive match and/or potential surrogates, intended parents, or donors.
• AAAA Fellows can explain the nuances of the laws in their particular state or country.
• AAAA offers a Mid-Year Conference every year that is open to non-AAAA professionals. The conference covers adoption or ART or both.
• AAAA Fellows can serve as speakers and writers for continuing legal education programs, legal publications, and for multidisciplinary conferences or programs involving adoption, ART, and related areas such as the foster care system.
• Media professionals easily can obtain legal insight from AAAA Fellows for relevant news stories.