Carol Ruckert Fiorucci
Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans’ Court
Court House
Beaver, PA 15009-2187
May 15, 2001
I am responding to your letter dated April 4, 2001. The following information was requested:
Q: What are your provisions for a birth parent who desires contact and reunion with the child they surrendered to adoption?
A: Our County only has a Petition for Non Identifying Information. The birth child makes the request. The cost for filing the Petition is $24.00 When the Petition is filed the file and the order is taken to our President Judge and he reviews the file and signs the order. The file is then sent back to our office and we mail the Non Identifying Information to the birth child.
Q: What provision is made for both the adoptee and birthparent for placing a waiver of confidentiality into the adoption file? Do you honor the waiver of confidentiality if both parties have files a waiver of confidentiality and what is your policy on releasing this information to both parties?
A: The birthparent or the adoptee may place a “Waiver of Confidentiality” into the file. If both have placed a waiver in the file, we will send the file up to our President Judge who will place an order in the file giving us permission to contact the birthparent to see if they still wish to be contacted and then when they respond we mail them the information for the adoptee.
Q: Provide the names of the intermediaries who are appointed to provide non-identifying information and conduct a search for birth parents.
A: Our county can only provide a non-identifying search through a court order by our President Judge. He then empowers our office to do the non-identifying search. At the present time our Register of Wills, Carol Ruckert Fiorucci and Paula Boyd, Chief Deputy mail out the non-identifying information.
I hope we were of some assistance to your office.
Sincerely,
Paula Boyd
Chief Deputy
Register of Wills – Beaver County
2-23-99 from Paula Boyd - Chief Deputy, Register of Wills - Beaver County, PA
In Beaver County we have a "Petition for the Release of Limited Information". The cost is $25.00. Check or money order would be made payable to "Register of Wills, Beaver County. The request would be sent to: Register of Wills Beaver County Courthouse Beaver, PA 15009
The adoptee and the natural parents can place a "waiver of confidentiality" into the adoption file or a letter stating they would wish to be contacted by the adoptee or natural parents should the parties be interested. In all cases we require an order to be signed by or Orphans' Court Judge to release the information to the parties.
The information released by Beaver County is very limited. We give the age of the birth parents at the time the child was adopted (not the birth date.) If they resided in Beaver County at the time of birth. What the natural parents occupation was (if stated) and what their nationality was (if stated.) If any medical information is listed we do state the information.
Beaver County Courthouse
3rd & Turnpike Street
Beaver, PA 15009
Carol Ruckert Fiorucci
Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphan's Court
Phone: 724-728-5700
Fax: 724-728-9810