Special Issue: In a contested adoption, enough time must be set aside for the completion of a careful and complete hearing. Each court must determine the typical range in length of contested hearings and establish a calendar to accommodate such hearings without the need for postponements and delays.

Special Issue: A number of judges have developed a special ceremony for consummating an adoption, including letting the child bang the gavel, the judge descending from the bench to join family in pronouncement, and including all extended family members and guests in the proceedings. Most families will want to take photos with the judge when the hearing is concluded.

Special Issue: Some jurisdictions prefer utilizing the same court which handled the termination of parental rights case for the adoption proceedings involving the same child. If the proceeding is a combined termination and adoption, courts may want to set forth explicitly and thoroughly the conditions and circumstances under which parental termination and consent to adoption is obtained, including determining whether the consent was voluntary and informed and that all alternatives to adoption were explained. A thorough record protects the court and adoptive parents if there is a later attempt to set aside the termination and/or adoption.