Alyssa N Seiden, Attorney

Alyssa Seiden has devoted her practice to helping adoptive parents and birth-parents navigate the adoption process. She understands that meeting her clients during a deeply emotional and highly charged time in their lives means being available and accessible to them whenever necessary to respond to changing circumstances and provide counsel. Alyssa has lectured on numerous occasions for various adult education programs and conferences on the subject of adoption.

Alyssa is a member of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association and the New Jersey Bar Association.

Alyssa received her law degree from Hofstra School of Law in 2001 and her undergraduate degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1998.

Fact Vs. Myth

Myth #1: There are no babies available to adopt in the United States

FACT: While it is true that there are more adoptive couples looking to adopt than there are available babies, the discrepancy is not as great as one might think. The United States ranks #1 in a worldwide epidemic of unplanned pregnancies and it is estimated that there are approximately 1,000,000 unplanned pregnancies every year. Obviously, not all these pregnancies will culminate in the birth of a baby and not all those babies born will be placed for adoption but any reasonable percentage means that there are plenty of babies in this country that need a loving home.

Myth #2: Domestic Adoption is very expensive

FACT: There are several laws in New York which were promulgated to protect the adoptive parents from undue financial burden when adopting a child. The law dictates what expenses may be reimbursed to a birthparent from an adoptive parent and the parameters of the amount. Everything that is paid must be verified and ultimately approved by the court, including all legal fees. Most birthmothers have Medicaid and therefore the adoptive parents will not be responsible for medical fees. The average cost for a domestic adoption is between $8,000 and $14,000 without medical costs.

Myth #3: Domestic adoption takes years

FACT: With a reasonable amount of pro-activeness, adoptive parents can be successful in as little as 3 months. The average amount of time it takes most adoptive parents is between 6 months to a year.

Myth #4: Birthmothers change their mind

FACT: This is perhaps the single most common concern among adoptive parents. It is estimated that less than one tenth of one percent of birthmothers change their mind once the adoptive parents have physical custody of the baby. While birthmothers do sometimes have a change of heart, it is most often at the earliest stages of contact with the adoptive parents. Birthparents are continually assessed throughout the process in order to determine their intentions as accurately as possible.