reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:20 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:20 - Dismissal of Adoption Proceedings.

    170-B:20 Dismissal of Adoption Proceedings. –||I. If at any time between the filing of a petition and the issuance of the final order completing the adoption it is known to the court that circumstances are such that the adoptee should not be adopted, the court may dismiss the proceedings.||II. Before entering an order to dismiss the proceedings and prior to a hearing, the court shall give notice of not less than 5 days to the petitioners and to the department or agency having made the assessment, and they shall be entitled to be present at such hearing to admit or refute the facts upon which the impending action of the court is based.||III. If the petition is dismissed or withdrawn, the custody of the minor child shall revert to the department or agency having had custody prior to the filing of the petition. In all other cases when a petition is dismissed or withdrawn, the minor child shall be placed in the custody of the department and the court shall order the department to make further assessment and report to the court regarding a suitable plan for the future well-being of the minor child.||IV. The court may order and require persons having an obligation, to contribute to the support and maintenance of the minor child in such amounts and at such times as it determines are just and reasonable.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:21 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:21 - Appeals and Validation of Adoption Decrees.

    170-B:21 Appeals and Validation of Adoption Decrees. –||I. An appeal from any final or interlocutory decree rendered by the court may be taken in the manner and time provided in RSA 567-A, except that no appeal shall be allowed from any order or decree involving proceedings for adoption unless taken within 30 days from receipt of such order or decree.||II. Subject to the disposition of an appeal upon the expiration of one year after a final adoption decree is issued, the decree cannot be challenged by any person including the petitioner, in any manner upon any ground, including fraud, misrepresentation, failure to give any required notice, or lack of jurisdiction of the parties or of the subject matter.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:22 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:22 - Report of Adoption.

    170-B:22 Report of Adoption. –||I. Within 7 days after the final decree is filed, the clerk shall send a hard copy of the report of the adoption to the town clerk of the town where the adoptee was born, to the commissioner, and to the department of state, division of vital records administration. The department of state, division of vital records administration shall provide suitable forms for such reports.||II. Each month the clerk shall send to the department, on forms supplied by the department, summaries of the affidavits filed pursuant to RSA 170-B:19, V. The department shall publish an annual report relative to general fees and other charges for adoption and related services.|||Source. 2004, 255:1. 2006, 200:8. 2011, 88:20, eff. July 1, 2011.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:23 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:23 - Confidentiality of Records.

    170-B:23 Confidentiality of Records. –||Notwithstanding any other law concerning public hearings and records:||I. All hearings held in adoptive proceedings shall be in closed court without admittance of any person other than essential officers of the court, the parties, their witnesses, counsel, and representatives of the agencies present to perform their official duties.||II. All papers and records, including birth certificates, pertaining to the adoption, whether part of the permanent record of the court or of a file in the division, in an agency or office of the town clerk or the bureau of vital records and health statistics are subject to inspection only upon written order of the court for good cause shown, except as otherwise provided in RSA 170-B:24.||III. Nothing contained in this section or RSA 170-B:24 shall prevent the department or the licensed child-placing agency from sharing with the adoptive parents all information it has available about the minor child being placed for adoption. The department or the licensed child-placing agency shall delete any information which would tend to identify a birth parent.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:25 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:25 - Effect of Petition and Decree of Adoption; Inheritance.

    170-B:25 Effect of Petition and Decree of Adoption;  Inheritance. –||I. Upon the issuance of the final decree of adoption, the adoptee shall be considered the child of the adopting parent or parents, entitled to the same rights and privileges and subject to the same duties and obligations as if such adoptee had been born of the adopting parent or parents.||II. Until the issuance of the final decree of adoption, the adoptee shall be considered the child of such adoptee's birth parent or parents only with respect to inheritance rights or privileges; but, when a child is adopted by an individual who intends to share parenting responsibilities with one of the adoptee's parents, the child's relationship to such parent shall in no way be altered by reason of the adoption.||III. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, upon the issuance of a final decree of adoption in which only one spouse is petitioner and the adoptee is over the age of 18, the adopted child shall be the child of the adopting spouse. Such child's relationship to the assenting parent shall not be altered if the child and the parent so agree. Such child shall no longer be deemed to be the child of such child's other birth or legal parent.||IV. Until the issuance of a final decree of adoption, all reciprocal rights of inheritance between the adoptee and the adoptee's birth parents and their respective collateral or lineal relatives shall continue to exist.||V. Upon the issuance of a final decree of adoption, all reciprocal rights of inheritance between the adoptee and the adoptive parents and their respective collateral or lineal relatives shall contemporaneously begin.||VI. Nothing contained in this section shall limit in any way the right of any person to provide for the disposition of his or her property by will. The rights of a child adopted after the making of a will by the adoptive parent or parents shall be the same as the rights of an after-born child. When the adoptive parent is an individual who intends to share parenting responsibilities with one of the adoptee's parents, nothing contained in this section shall affect the rights of inheritance between the child and such child's legal parent or their collateral or lineal relatives. In the absence of specific language to the contrary, an adoptee shall be considered the same as a birth child, issue or heir of the body.|||Source. 2004, 255:1. 2006, 200:10, 11, eff. July 30, 2006. 2020, 26:6, eff. Jan. 1, 2021.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:26 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:26 - Change of Name.

    170-B:26 Change of Name. –||If in a petition for the adoption of a child a change of name is requested, the court, upon decreeing the adoption, may also decree such change of name.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:27 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:27 - Readoption.

    170-B:27 Readoption. –||I. Any adoptee may be readopted in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. All provisions relating to the birth parent or parents shall apply to the adoptive parent or parents except that in no case of readoption shall a birth parent be made a party to the proceedings, nor shall the surrender of parental rights by a birth parent be necessary. For purposes of service of process, necessary parties and surrender, the adoptive parent or parents shall be substituted for the birth parent.||II. The court may validate and issue an adoption decree for an adoption finalized in another jurisdiction, provided that evidence satisfactory to the court is produced to demonstrate the validity of such adoption. For the purposes of this paragraph, satisfactory evidence includes documentation from the United States Department of Justice or the United States Department of State that a legal adoption has been completed in another country. Probate court rules shall specify such acceptable documentation.|||Source. 2004, 255:1. 2006, 200:12, eff. July 30, 2006.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:28 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:28 - Placement of a Child From Another State or Country.

    170-B:28 Placement of a Child From Another State or Country. –||Any person or any public or private agency, corporation, or organization, before bringing or causing any child to be brought into this state from any other state or country for the purpose of adoption, or receiving such child in this state for such purpose, shall make application to the commissioner of the department. Such application shall be in the form prescribed by the commissioner and shall contain such information as the commissioner may require, including any information required to comply with the provisions of RSA 170-A. No placement of the child shall occur until permission has been obtained from the commissioner. No petition for adoption of a child from another state or country shall be granted in the absence of compliance with this section.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:29 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:29 - Recognition of Foreign Decree Affecting Adoption.

    170-B:29 Recognition of Foreign Decree Affecting Adoption. –||A decree of court terminating the relationship of parent and child or establishing the relation by adoption issued pursuant to due process of law by a court of any other jurisdiction within or without the United States shall be recognized in this state and the rights and obligations of the parties as to matters within the jurisdiction of this state shall be determined as though the decree was issued by a court of this state.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:30 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:30 - Fees and Court Costs.

    170-B:30 Fees and Court Costs. –||All entry fees and court costs shall be paid by the petitioner. The court, however, may waive entry fees and court costs where payment would work a hardship on the petitioner. The department is exempt from paying any entry fees and court costs.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:31 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:31 - Amended Birth Certificate.

    170-B:31 Amended Birth Certificate. –||A birth certificate issued for an adoptee shall make no reference to adoption and shall conform as nearly as possible to any other birth certificate.|||Source. 2004, 255:1, eff. Jan. 2, 2005.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:32 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:32 - Unauthorized Advertising for Adoption Purposes; Exceptions; Penalty.

    170-B:32 Unauthorized Advertising for Adoption Purposes;  Exceptions;  Penalty. –||I. In this section:||(a) "Advertise through a public medium" means to communicate by any public medium, including by newspaper, periodical, telephone book listing, outdoor advertising sign, radio, television, or by computerized communication system, which includes an Internet site, an Internet profile, or any similar medium of communication provided via the Internet. "Advertising through a public medium" does not include communicating through personal or work electronic mail, text, or telephone.||(b) "Another jurisdiction" means the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, an Indian tribe, or a state of the United States other than New Hampshire.||(c) "Child" means a person less than 18 years of age.||II. Except as described in paragraph III, it is unlawful to advertise through a public medium for one of the following purposes:||(a) To find a child to adopt or to otherwise take permanent physical custody of a child;||(b) To find an adoptive home or any other permanent physical placement for a child or to arrange for or assist in the adoption, adoptive placement, or any other permanent physical placement of a child; or||(c) To offer to place a child for adoption or in any other permanent physical placement with another person.||III. Paragraph II shall not apply to:||(a) An employee of the department of health and human services or a licensed child-placing agency, who is acting within the scope of his or her employment to place a child for adoption or in foster care;||(b) An adoption exchange whose membership includes licensed child-placing agencies that provide information and referral services to find adoptive homes and to promote adoption;||(c) An individual or organization that has entered into an agreement with or is actively working with any of the agencies or entities described in paragraph (a) or (b) to place a child for adoption;||(d) A person who advertises fertility-related services;||(e) An individual who has received a favorable recommendation regarding his or her fitness to be an adoptive parent in this state from the department of health and human services or a child-placing agency licensed in this state or in another jurisdiction from an entity authorized by that jurisdiction to conduct studies of potential adoptive homes;||(f) An individual who expresses a general interest in becoming an adoptive parent; or||(g) An attorney who is licensed to practice in New Hampshire who advertises his or her availability to practice or provide services relating to the adoption of children.||IV. Unauthorized advertising of a child, as described in paragraph II, is a misdemeanor.|||Source. 2016, 159:1, eff. July 1, 2016.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-B:33 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-B - Adoption|Section 170-B:33 - Unlawful Placement of a Child for Adoption.

    170-B:33 Unlawful Placement of a Child for Adoption. –||It shall be unlawful for a child's parent or legal guardian to knowingly place a child for adoption, or knowingly attempt to place a child for adoption through the use of a power of attorney or other legal document in this state unless such parent or legal guardian follows the procedures for adoption set out in this chapter. If a parent or legal guardian transfers physical custody of the child with the intent to permanently transfer physical and legal custody of the child to another and does not follow such procedures within 6 months of transferring physical custody of the child to another, he or she shall be deemed to have abandoned the child as described in RSA 170-C:5, I and shall be guilty of endangering the welfare of a child under RSA 639:3.|||Source. 2016, 159:1, eff. July 1, 2016.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:1 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:1 - Purpose.

    170-C:1 Purpose. –||The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the involuntary termination of the parent-child relationship by a judicial process which will safeguard the rights and interests of all parties concerned and when it is in the best interest of the child. Implicit in this chapter is the philosophy that whenever possible family life should be strengthened and preserved, and that the parent-child relationship is to be terminated only when the adoption of that child may be contemplated.|||Source. 1973, 523:1, eff. Aug. 31, 1973.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:3 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:3 - Jurisdiction.

    170-C:3 Jurisdiction. –||The probate court shall have exclusive original jurisdiction over petitions to terminate the parent-child relationship when the child involved is present in the state or is in the legal custody or legal guardianship of an authorized agency located in the state. The petition shall be filed in the probate court of the county in which the child or his parents reside at the time of filing of the petition, or in the probate court of the county in which the authorized agency has provided services to the child.|||Source. 1973, 523:1. 1983, 331:6, eff. Aug. 17, 1983.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:4 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:4 - Petition.

    170-C:4 Petition. –||A petition for termination of the parent-child relationship may be filed by the following:||I. Either parent when termination of the parent-child relationship is sought with respect to the other parent.||II. The guardian of the person or the legal custodian of the child or the foster parents. Foster parents may file only when the following conditions are met:||(a) The child has lived in the foster home continuously for 24 months; and||(b) The foster parents have requested in writing the licensed child-placing agency to legally free the child for adoption, but that the agency has not initiated proceedings, and there is reasonable cause to believe that grounds exist.||III. An authorized agency.|||Source. 1973, 523:1. 1981, 381:1, eff. Aug. 22, 1981.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:5-a (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:5-a - Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship in Cases of Sexual Assault.

    170-C:5-a Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship in Cases of Sexual Assault. –||A petition for termination of the parent-child relationship shall be granted in cases where the child's birth is the result of sexual assault of the birth mother and where termination of the parent-child relationship is in the best interests of the child. Upon a showing, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the child's birth is the result of sexual assault of the birth mother, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that termination of the biological father's parent-child relationship with the child is in the best interest of the child. This section shall apply to a person who has been found to be the father of a child and who: ||I. Has been convicted of or who has pled guilty or nolo contendere to a violation of sexual assault as defined in RSA 632-A:2 through RSA 632-A:4, or a similar statute in another state against the birth mother for his conduct in fathering the child; or||II. At a fact-finding hearing, is found beyond a reasonable doubt to have fathered the child through an act of non-consensual sexual penetration.|||Source. 2014, 244:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2015. 2017, 93:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2018.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:6 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:6 - Contents of Petition.

    170-C:6 Contents of Petition. –||The petition for the termination of the parent-child relationship shall include, to the best information or belief of the petitioner:||I. The name and place of residence of the petitioner.||II. The name, sex, date and place of birth, and residence of the child.||III. The basis for the court's jurisdiction.||IV. The relationship of the petitioner to the child, or the fact that no relationship exists.||V. The names, addresses, and dates of birth of the parents.||VI. When the child's parent is a minor, the names and addresses of said minor's parents or guardian of the person.||VII. The names and addresses of the person having legal custody or guardianship of the person or acting in loco parentis to the child or the organization or authorized agency having legal custody or providing care for the child.||VIII. The grounds on which termination of the parent-child relationship is sought.||IX. The names of the authorized agency to whom or to which legal custody or guardianship of the person of the child may be transferred.|||Source. 1973, 523:1, eff. Aug. 31, 1973.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:7 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:7 - Notice.

    170-C:7 Notice. –||After a petition has been filed, the court shall set the time and place for a hearing and shall give notice thereof to the petitioner who shall cause notice to be given to the parents of the child, the guardian of the person of the child, the person having legal custody of the child, any individual standing in loco parentis to the child, and the guardian ad litem of any party. Where the child's parent is a minor, notice shall also be given to said minor's parents or guardian of the person unless the court is satisfied, in the exercise of its discretion, that such notice is not in the best interest of said minor and that it would serve no useful purpose. Notice shall be given by personal service to the parent whose parental rights may be terminated pursuant to the petition that has been filed. Where it shall appear impractical to personally serve said parent, the court shall order service by certified mail to the parent's last known address or publication once a week for 2 successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the area where that person was last domiciled or both. All other parties shall be given notice by regular mail at their last known address. The hearing shall take place no sooner than 20 days after service of notice, except that if notice is by publication the hearing shall take place no sooner than 7 days after the last date of publication.|||Source. 1973, 523:1. 1974, 18:3, eff. April 2, 1974.|
NH Rev Stat § 170-C:8 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title XII - Public Safety and Welfare|Title 170-C - Termination of Parental Rights|Section 170-C:8 - Guardian Ad Litem.

    170-C:8 Guardian Ad Litem. –||When termination of the parent-child relationship is sought under RSA 170-C:5, IV, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for the alleged incompetent parent. The court shall appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the interests of the child in all termination hearings. The court may, in any other case, appoint a guardian ad litem, as may be deemed necessary or desirable, for any party.|||Source. 1973, 523:1, eff. Aug. 31, 1973.|