FAMILY INJUSTICE

[Rigby Julyan]

The Access to Adoption Records Act is an Ontario law passed in 2008 regarding the disclosure of information between parties involved in adoptions. It is the successor to the 2005 Adoption Information Disclosure Act, parts of which were struck down in 2007 in a ruling by Judge Edward Belobaba of the Ontario Superior Court.

[Admin]

Notice, wish not to be contacted

Adopted person

(1) An
adopted person who is at least 18 years old may submit to the Registrar
General a notice that he or she wishes not to be contacted by a birth
parent.

Proof of identity and age

(2) A notice described
in subsection (1) shall not be registered until the applicant has
provided the Registrar General with such evidence of his or her
identity and age as may be required by the Registrar General.

Birth parent

(3) A birth parent may submit to the Registrar General a notice that he or she wishes not to be contacted by the adopted person.

Proof of identity

(3.1)
A notice described in subsection (3) shall not be registered until the
applicant provides the Registrar General with such evidence of his or
her identity as may be required by the Registrar General.

(2)
Subsection 48.4 (5) of the Act is amended by striking out "A notice is
registered and in effect" at the beginning and substituted "A notice
shall be registered by the Registrar General and is in effect".

(3) Subsection 48.4 (6) of the Act is amended by striking out "a notice registered" and substituting "a notice submitted".

(4) Subsection 48.4 (7) of the Act is amended by striking out "a notice registered" and substituting "a notice submitted".

7. Sections 48.5, 48.6, 48.7, 48.8, 48.9, 48.10, 48.11 and 48.12 of the Act are repealed.

8. The Act is amended by adding the following section:

Disclosure veto

Application

48.5
(1) This section applies to an adopted person and to the birth parents
of an adopted person only if the registered adoption order relating to
the adopted person was made before September 1, 2008.

Adopted person

(2)
An adopted person who is at least 18 years old may submit to the
Registrar General a disclosure veto to prohibit the disclosure of
information under section 48.2 to a birth parent.

Same

(3)
If there are two birth parents, the adopted person may specify in the
disclosure veto that it is to be effective only against one of the
birth parents.

Proof of identity and age

(4) A disclosure
veto submitted under subsection (2) shall not be registered until the
adopted person provides the Registrar General with such evidence of his
or her identity and age as may be required by the Registrar General.

Birth parent

(5)
A birth parent of an adopted person may submit to the Registrar General
a disclosure veto to prohibit the disclosure of information under
section 48.1 to the adopted person.

Proof of identity

(6)
A disclosure veto submitted under subsection (5) shall not be
registered until the birth parent provides the Registrar General with
such evidence of his or her identity as may be required by the
Registrar General.

Additional statement

(7) A disclosure
veto submitted under subsection (2) or (5) may include a brief
statement concerning the person's reasons for prohibiting the
disclosure of information and a brief statement of any information
about the person's medical and family history that, despite the
disclosure veto, the person wishes to have disclosed to an applicant
under section 48.1 or 48.2.

When veto is registered and in effect

(8)
A disclosure veto shall be registered by the Registrar General and is
in effect when the Registrar General has matched it with the original
registration, if any, of the adopted person's birth or, if there is no
original registration, when the Registrar General has matched it with
the registered adoption order.

Exception

(9) Despite
subsection (8), a disclosure veto submitted by an adopted person with
respect to one or two birth parents does not come into effect with
respect to any birth parent to whom the Registrar General has already
given the information described in subsection 48.2 (1) before the match
is made.

Same

(10) Despite subsection (8), a disclosure
veto submitted by a birth parent does not come into effect if, before
the match is made, the Registrar General has already given the adopted
person the uncertified copies of the documents described in subsection
48.1 (1).

Withdrawal of veto

(11) Upon application, the adopted person or birth parent, as the case may be, may withdraw a disclosure veto.

When withdrawal takes effect

(12)
If an application to withdraw a disclosure veto is made under
subsection (11), the disclosure veto ceases to be in effect when the
Registrar General has matched the application with the disclosure veto.

Death of person who submitted veto

(13)
If an adopted person or a birth parent who submitted a disclosure veto
under this section dies and the disclosure veto is in effect, the
disclosure veto ceases to be in effect when the Registrar General has
received evidence of the death and the date of the death that is
satisfactory to the Registrar General and has matched that information
with the disclosure veto.

Administration

(14) Subsections 2 (2) to (4) do not apply to disclosure vetoes registered under this section.

9. The Act is amended by adding the following section:

Unsealing of files

48.6
For the purposes of sections 48.1 to 48.5, the Registrar General may
unseal any file that was sealed under this Act or a predecessor of this
Act.

10. The Act is amended by adding the following section:

Review re: disclosure of adoption information

48.7
The Lieutenant Governor in Council shall ensure that a review of the
operation of sections 48.1 to 48.6 and section 56.1 is conducted within
five years after section 4 of the Access to Adoption Records Act (Vital
Statistics Statute Law Amendment), 2008 comes into force.

11. (1) Clauses 60 (1) (r.1) and (r.2) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

(r.1)
respecting the rules that apply where an adopted person or birth parent
has submitted more than one notice under sections 48.3 and 48.4 or one
such notice and a disclosure veto under section 48.5, or any other
combination of such documents, including providing whether a notice or
disclosure veto prevails and terminating the effect of a notice or of a
disclosure veto;

(r.2) governing the disclosure of information
in relation to adoption in situations where an individual has been the
subject of more than one registered adoption order, including providing
that all or part of sections 48.1, 48.2, 48.3, 48.4 and 48.5 do not
apply to an adopted person or a birth parent or classes of adopted
persons or birth parents;

(2) Subsections 60 (2) and (3) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

Transitional matters

(2)
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations providing for
transitional matters which, in the opinion of the Lieutenant Governor
in Council, are necessary or desirable in connection with the enactment
of sections 48.1, 48.2, 48.5, 48.6 and 48.7 by the Access to Adoption
Records Act (Vital Statistics Statute Law Amendment), 2008 and the
amendment or repeal of other sections of this Act by that Act.

Child and Family Services Act

12. Subsection 162.1 (4) of the Child and Family Services Act is repealed.

13. Subsection 165 (1) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Confidentiality of adoption information

(1)
Despite any other Act, after an adoption order is made, no person shall
inspect, remove, alter or disclose information that relates to the
adoption and is kept by the Ministry, a society, a licensee or a
designated custodian under section 162.1 and no person shall permit it
to be inspected, removed, altered or disclosed unless the inspection,
removal, alteration or disclosure is,

(a) necessary for the
maintenance or updating of the information by the Ministry, society,
licensee or designated custodian or their staff; or

(b) authorized under this Act.

14. Section 225 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Review re disclosure of adoption information

225.
The Lieutenant Governor in Council shall ensure that a review of the
operation of sections 161 to 165 and section 176.1 is conducted within
five years after section 4 of the Access to Adoption Records Act (Vital
Statistics Statute Law Amendment), 2008 comes into force.

Commencement

15. (1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

(2) Sections 2, 4, 8, 9, 10 and 11 come into force on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.

Short title

16. The short title of this Act is the Access to Adoption Records Act (Vital Statistics Statute Law Amendment), 2008 .

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This
Explanatory Note was written as a reader's aid to Bill 12 and does not
form part of the law. Bill 12 has been enacted as Chapter 5 of the
Statutes of Ontario, 2008.

The Bill amends sections 48.1 to
48.12 of the Vital Statistics Act in relation to the disclosure of
information relating to adoptions.

Currently, sections 48.1 and
48.2 of the Act provide for the disclosure by the Registrar General, to
adopted persons and birth parents, of certain information relating to
adoptions. The Bill provides for the registration of disclosure vetoes
to prevent the disclosure of this information. An adopted person may
register a disclosure veto to prevent the disclosure of information to
a birth parent under section 48.2. A birth parent may register a
disclosure veto to prevent the disclosure of information to an adopted
person under section 48.1. The right to register a disclosure veto is
only available in relation to adoptions that were the result of
adoption orders made before September 1, 2008.

The Bill repeals
sections 48.1 and 48.2 of the Act as of the day the Bill receives Royal
Assent and re-enacts them at a later time to be determined by
proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor to ensure that information will
not be disclosed until after the disclosure veto provisions have been
in effect. This is to allow adopted persons and birth parents the
opportunity to register their disclosure vetoes before information can
be obtained under the disclosure provisions.

The Bill also
repeals the existing sections 48.5 to 48.10 of the Act. Sections 48.5
to 48.8 of the Act currently allow adopted persons and birth parents to
apply to the Child and Family Services Review Board for an order
prohibiting the disclosure of information under sections 48.1 and 48.2.
The circumstances in which such an order will be made by the Board are
restricted and it is for the applicant to demonstrate that he or she
qualifies for the order. Section 48.9 prohibits the Registrar General
from disclosing information about an adopted person to a birth parent
under section 48.2 of the Act if the Registrar General is notified by a
children's aid society that the adopted person in question was the
victim of abuse by the birth parent. Section 48.10 allows an adopted
person to register a notice that he or she waives the protection of any
prohibition under section 48.9.

Section 48.11 of the Act is
repealed. That section allowed the Registrar General to unseal files
for purposes of the provisions relating to adoption information
disclosure. The substance of that section is re-enacted, with minor
changes, in a new section 48.6.

Section 48.12 of the Act is
repealed. That section provided for a review of the adoption
information disclosure provisions set out in the Act within five years
after the day section 11 of the Adoption Information Disclosure Act,
2005 comes into force. A new section 48.7 extends the five-year period
until five years after the day section 4 of the Bill comes into force.

The
Bill makes other minor amendments to the Act, including amendments to
subsection 60 (1) of the Act to provide that the Lieutenant Governor in
Council can make regulations to deal with the disclosure of adoption
information in specified circumstances not addressed by the Act.

Consequential amendments are made to the Child and Family Services Act .

[Admin]

Bill 12 2008

An Act to amend the Vital Statistics Act in
relation to adoption information and to make consequential amendments
to the Child and Family Services Act

Note: This Act amends or
repeals more than one Act. For the legislative history of these Acts,
see the Table of Consolidated Public Statutes - Detailed Legislative
History on www.e-Laws.gov.on.ca.

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Vital Statistics Act

1. (1) The definition of "Child and Family Services Review Board" in section 1 of the Vital Statistics Act is repealed.

(2) Section 1 of the Act is amended by adding the following definition:

"original
registration" means an original registration made under this Act or a
predecessor of this Act; ("enregistrement initial")

2.
Subsection 6.1 (1) of the Act is amended by striking out "sections 48.1
to 48.10" at the end and substituting "sections 48.1 to 48.5".

3. Sections 48.1 and 48.2 of the Act are repealed.

4. The Act is amended by adding the following sections:

Disclosure to an adopted person

48.1
(1) An adopted person may apply to the Registrar General for an
uncertified copy of the original registration, if any, of the adopted
person's birth and an uncertified copy of any registered adoption order
respecting the adopted person.

Age restriction

(2) The adopted person is not entitled to apply for the uncertified copies until he or she is at least 18 years old.

Disclosure

(3)
Subject to subsections (5), (6), (7), (9), (10) and (11), the applicant
may obtain the uncertified copies from the Registrar General upon
payment of any required fee and upon production of any evidence of the
applicant's identity and age that may be required by the Registrar
General.

Effect of notice of preferred manner of contact

(4)
If a notice submitted by a birth parent under subsection 48.3 (2) is in
effect, the Registrar General shall give the applicant a copy of the
notice when the Registrar General gives the applicant the uncertified
copies.

Effect of notice of wish not to be contacted

(5)
If there is only one birth parent and a notice submitted by the birth
parent under subsection 48.4 (3) is in effect, the Registrar General
shall not give the uncertified copies to the applicant unless the
applicant agrees in writing not to contact or attempt to contact the
birth parent, either directly or indirectly.

Same

(6) If
there are two birth parents and notices submitted by both birth parents
under subsection 48.4 (3) are in effect, the Registrar General shall
not give the uncertified copies to the applicant unless the applicant
agrees in writing not to contact or attempt to contact the birth
parents, either directly or indirectly.

Same

(7) If there
are two birth parents and only one notice submitted by a birth parent
under subsection 48.4 (3) is in effect, the Registrar General shall,

(a)
give the applicant the uncertified copies if the applicant agrees in
writing not to contact or attempt to contact that birth parent, either
directly or indirectly; or

(b) if the applicant refuses to agree
in writing not to contact or attempt to contact that birth parent,
either directly or indirectly, delete any identifying information
relating to that birth parent from the uncertified copies and give the
applicant the redacted uncertified copies.

Copy of notice

(8)
Where the Registrar General gives the applicant the uncertified copies
under subsection (5) or (6) or clause (7) (a), he or she shall also
give the applicant a copy of the notice that was submitted under
subsection 48.4 (3) by either or both of the birth parents, as the case
may be.

Effect of disclosure veto

(9) If there is only
one birth parent and a disclosure veto submitted by the birth parent
under subsection 48.5 (5) is in effect, the Registrar General shall not
give the uncertified copies to the applicant.

Same

(10)
If there are two birth parents and disclosure vetoes submitted by both
birth parents under subsection 48.5 (5) are in effect, the Registrar
General shall not give the uncertified copies to the applicant.

Same

(11)
If there are two birth parents and only one disclosure veto submitted
by a birth parent under subsection 48.5 (5) is in effect, the Registrar
General shall delete any identifying information relating to that birth
parent from the uncertified copies and give the applicant the redacted
uncertified copies.

Copy of statement

(12) If a
disclosure veto is in effect, the Registrar General shall advise the
applicant that a disclosure veto is in effect and give the applicant a
copy of any statement that may have been included in the disclosure
veto under subsection 48.5 (7).

Same

(13) If, at the time
of application, a disclosure veto has ceased to be in effect under
subsection 48.5 (13), the Registrar General shall advise the applicant
of this fact and give the applicant a copy of any statement that may
have been included in the disclosure veto under subsection 48.5 (7).

Definition, identifying information

(14) In subsections (7) and (11),

"identifying
information" means information whose disclosure, alone or in
combination with other information, will in the circumstances reveal
the identity of the person to whom it relates.

Disclosure to a birth parent

48.2
(1) A birth parent of an adopted person may apply to the Registrar
General for all the information contained in the following documents,
with the exception of information about persons other than the
applicant, the adopted person and a person whose name appears in the
documents because of their involvement, in a professional capacity, in
the adoption or birth registration:

1. The original registration, if any, of the adopted person's birth.

2. Any birth registration respecting the adopted person that was substituted in accordance with subsection 28 (2).

3. Any registered adoption order respecting the adopted person.

Age restriction

(2)
The birth parent is not entitled to apply for the information described
in subsection (1) until the adopted person is at least 19 years old.

Disclosure

(3)
Subject to subsections (5) and (7), the applicant may obtain the
information described in subsection (1) from the Registrar General upon
payment of any required fee and upon production of any evidence of the
applicant's identity and of the adopted person's age that may be
required by the Registrar General.

Effect of notice of preferred manner of contact

(4)
If a notice submitted under subsection 48.3 (1) is in effect and sets
out the manner in which the adopted person wishes to be contacted by
the applicant, the Registrar General shall give the applicant a copy of
the notice when the Registrar General gives the applicant the
information described in subsection (1).

Effect of notice of wish not to be contacted

(5)
If a notice submitted under subsection 48.4 (1) is in effect and states
that the adopted person does not wish to be contacted by the applicant,
the Registrar General shall not give the information described in
subsection (1) to the applicant unless the applicant agrees in writing
not to contact or attempt to contact the adopted person, either
directly or indirectly.

Copy of notice of wish not to be contacted

(6)
The Registrar General shall give the applicant a copy of a notice
described in subsection (5) when the Registrar General gives the
applicant the information described in subsection (1).

Effect of disclosure veto

(7)
If a disclosure veto submitted by an adopted person under subsection
48.5 (2) is in effect, the Registrar General shall not give the
information described in subsection (1) to,

(a) any birth parent
who applies for the information under subsection (1), if the disclosure
veto does not specify a birth parent against whom it is effective; or

(b)
if the adopted person specifies in the disclosure veto that it is to be
effective only against a particular birth parent, the birth parent
specified in the disclosure veto.

Copy of statement

(8)
If a disclosure veto submitted by an adopted person is in effect and
prohibits the disclosure of information to the applicant, the Registrar
General shall,

(a) advise the applicant that a disclosure veto is in effect; and

(b)
give the applicant a copy of any statement intended for the applicant
that may have been included in the disclosure veto under subsection
48.5 (7).

Same

(9) If, at the time of the application, a
disclosure veto prohibiting disclosure to the applicant has ceased to
be in effect under subsection 48.5 (13), the Registrar General shall,

(a) advise the applicant of this fact; and

(b)
give the applicant a copy of any statement intended for the applicant
that may have been included in the disclosure veto under subsection
48.5 (7).

5. (1) Subsections 48.3 (1) and (2) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

Notice, preferred manner of contact

Adopted person

(1)
An adopted person who is at least 18 years old may submit to the
Registrar General a notice specifying his or her preferences concerning
the manner in which a birth parent may contact him or her.

Proof of identity and age

(1.1)
A notice submitted under subsection (1) shall not be registered until
the applicant provides the Registrar General with such evidence of his
or her identity and age as may be required by the Registrar General.

Birth parent

(2)
A birth parent may submit to the Registrar General a notice specifying
his or her preferences concerning the manner in which an adopted person
may contact him or her.

Proof of identity

(2.1) A notice
described in subsection (2) shall not be registered until the applicant
provides the Registrar General with such evidence of his or her
identity as may be required by the Registrar General.

(2)
Subsection 48.3 (3) of the Act is amended by striking out "A notice is
registered and in effect" at the beginning and substituting "A notice
shall be registered by the Registrar General and is in effect".

(3) Subsection 48.3 (4) of the Act is amended by striking out "a notice registered" and substituting "a notice submitted".

(4) Subsection 48.3 (5) of the Act is amended by striking out "a notice registered" and substituting "a notice submitted".

6. (1) Subsections 48.4 (1), (2) and (3) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted: