Selena was a single 18-year old when she got pregnant and gave birth to Suri. She then left to work as a caregiver in Canada, leaving Suri with her parents in the Philippines. Selena, now 34 years old and a permanent resident in Canada, met and married Sam who is a 24-year old Canadian citizen who works as a movie star in Canada. Sam’s parents are of Filipino ancestry but had become Canadian citizens before Sam was born. Wanting Suri to have all the advantages of a legitimate child, Selena and Sam decided to adopt her. Sam’s parents, already opposed to the marriage of their son to someone significantly older, vehemently objected to the adoption. They argued that Sam was not old enough and that the requisite age gap required by the Inter-Country Adoption Act between Sam as adopter and Suri as adoptee was not met.
Are Sam’s parents correct? (2.5%)
Suggested Answer:
No. Answer
Under the law on Inter-Country Adoption, the age requirement of at least twenty-seven (27) years of age and at least sixteen (16) years older than the child to be adopted, at the time of application, does not apply if adopter is the parent by nature of the child to be adopted or the spouse of such parent. Rule
In the case at bar, Sam is the spouse of Selene, who was parent of the child to be adopted, Suri. Accordingly, the age requirements do not apply to Sam Apply
Thus, Sam’s parents are not correct. Conclusion
