Madelyn Freundlich and Lisa Peterson

In wrongful adoption, a child placement agency fails to disclose or misrepresents vital health or background information of a child to the adoptive family. In the following viewpoint, Madelyn Freundlich and Lisa Peterson contend that wrongful adoptions highlight the need for greater protection of the rights of adoptive parents. The authors make several recommendations designed to safeguard adoptive families and children from wrongful adoption. Freundlich is executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, an organization dedicated to improving adoption practices and policies, and author of numerous books on adoption. Peterson is legal consultant to Spence-Chaplin Services to Families and Children, a nonprofit child placement agency.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. In Freundlich and Peterson’s opinion, how can disclosure of medical or...