Want some help?
Does this page need updating?
Look for Similar
Other Find & Connect resources
Legislation Adoption Act 1994
State of Western Australia
Adoption Act 1994 (WA), 14 September 2012
Details
- From
- 1994
- To
- 1994
- Categories
- Legislation
- Alternative Names
- 009 of 1994 (State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 1994)
Summary
The Adoption Act 1994 completely changed the adoption landscape in Western Australia. This new Act repealed the original Adoption of Children Act, 1896 and its 98 years of amendments, Rules and Regulations. These years had seen adoption legislation and practices move through fairly open and unregulated beginnings to times when information about adoption was 'closed' and contact with families of origin was actively prevented.
Under the Adoption Act 1994 and its subsequent amendments, a 'highly regulated framework' nonetheless promotes 'open adoption' which:
- Recognises the right of every child to know about their family and culture of origin
- Encourages contact between all parties to the adoption 'where that is possible and appropriate'
The Act also acknowledges and respects that adoption is not part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture.
The Department responsible for child welfare in Western Australia is the only agency who can arrange adoptions.
The Adoption Act 1994 and its Regulations operated from 1 January 1995.
Details
In its 2010 reprint, the Adoption Act 1994 stated the following 'paramount considerations', or principles, to guide adoption practices:
(1)(a) the welfare and best interests of a child who is an adoptee or a prospective adoptee;
(b) the principle that adoption is a service for a child who is an adoptee or a prospective adoptee; and
(c) the adoption of a child should occur only in circumstances where there is no other appropriate alternative for the child.
(2) It is acknowledged that adoption is not part of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Island culture and that therefore the adoption of a child who is an Aboriginal person or a Torres Strait Islander should occur only in circumstances where there is no other appropriate alternative for that child.
Related Entries
Timeline
1896 Adoption of Children Act 1896
1921 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1921
1926 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1926
1946 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1945
1949 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1949
1954 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act (No. 2) 1953
1964 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1964
1971 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act, 1971
1973 Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1973
1976 Adoption of Children Amendment Act 1976
1980 Adoption of Children Amendment Act 1980
1985 Adoption of Children Amendment Act 1985
1994 Adoption Act 1994
Publications
Statutes
- Adoption of Children Act 1896, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 23 September 1896. Also available at http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/legislation/statutes.nsf/main_mrtitle_9905_homepage.html. Details
- Adoption Act 1994 (WA), State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 15 April 1994. Also available at http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/legislation/statutes.nsf/main_mrtitle_11273_homepage.html. Details
- Adoption Regulations 1995 (WA), State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 1995. Also available at http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/legislation/statutes.nsf/main_mrtitle_1108_homepage.html. Details
Online Resources
- Adoption Jigsaw, Western Australia, Adoption Jigsaw, Western Australia (Inc), http://www.jigsaw.org.au/. Details
- 'Western Australian Government Gazette No. 185', in Western Australian Government Gazette Online Archive, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 29 December 1994, http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/gazette/gazette.nsf/gazlist/C6123F066D7731E9C8257299000BC070/$file/gg185.pdf. Details
- 'Western Australian Government Gazette No. 165', in Western Australian Government Gazette Online Archive, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 25 November 1994, http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/gazette/gazette.nsf/gazlist/3005F41263303723C825729900099CDE/$file/gg165.pdf. Details
- 'Thinking About Adoption?', in Adoption website, 2012, http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/FosteringandAdoption/AdoptionAndHomeForLife/Pages/AllAboutAdoption.aspx#6. Details
- Department for Child Protection Western Australia, 'Adoption by a Step-Parent', in Adoption website, Department for Child Protection Western Australia, Government of Western Australia, May 2009, http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/FosteringandAdoption/AdoptionAndHomeForLife/Documents/Step-ParentAdoptionInformationGuide.pdf. Details
- State Law Publisher: Official Publisher of Western Australian Legislation and Statutory Information, 1997, http://www.slp.wa.gov.au. Details
Gallery
Sources used to compile this entry: 'Western Australian Government Gazette No. 165', in Western Australian Government Gazette Online Archive, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 25 November 1994, http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/gazette/gazette.nsf/gazlist/3005F41263303723C825729900099CDE/$file/gg165.pdf; 'Thinking About Adoption?', in Adoption website, 2012, http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/FosteringandAdoption/AdoptionAndHomeForLife/Pages/AllAboutAdoption.aspx#6.
Prepared by: Debra Rosser
Created: 27 June 2011, Last modified: 28 June 2012
Last updated: 22 March 2013
Cite this: http://www.findandconnect.gov.au/wa/biogs/WE00392b.htm
First published by the Find and Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Australia License