Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 42 > Chapter 4 > Part 1 - Direct Parental Placements

• Adoption: means the act of creating the legal relationship between parent and child when it does not exist genetically. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Adoptive parent: means an adult who has become the mother or father of a child through the legal process of adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Agency: means a child placement agency licensed by the state of Montana pursuant to Title 52, chapter 8, that is expressly empowered to place children preliminary to a possible adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Birth parent: means the woman who gave birth to the child or the father of genetic origin of the child. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Child: means any person under 18 years of age. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Court: means a court of record in a competent jurisdiction and in Montana means a district court or a tribal court. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Department: means the department of public health and human services, provided for in 2-15-2201. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Direct parental placement adoption: means an adoption in which the parent of the child places the child with a prospective adoptive parent personally known and selected by the parent independent of an agency. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Extended family member: means a person who is or was the adoptee's parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle, brother or sister, or child. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Parent: means the birth or adoptive mother or the birth, adoptive, or legal father whose parental rights have not been terminated. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Placing parent: means a parent who is voluntarily making a child available for adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Preplacement evaluation: means the home study process conducted by the department or a licensed child-placing agency that:

  (a)assists a prospective adoptive parent or family to assess its own readiness to adopt; and

  (b)assesses whether the prospective adoptive parent or family and home meet applicable standards. See Montana Code 42-1-103

• Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• Records: means all documents, exhibits, and data pertaining to an adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• Relinquishment: means the informed and voluntary release in writing of all parental rights with respect to a child by a parent to an agency or individual. See Montana Code 42-1-103
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Writing: includes printing. See Montana Code 1-1-203