Justice Alexander Hunter Jr.
Wallace C., a naturalized U.S. citizen, filed a petition in accordance with Domestic Relations Law §115, seeking approval of his proposed adoption of his great-nephew, Jason K., who was born in Seoul, South Korea to his niece and her husband on Oct. 7, 1997. Jason, whose parents have been divorced and live separately in Korea, assumed residence in his maternal great-uncle’s Queens household in 2010. In Fall of 2012, Jason began 10th grade at a private boarding school in New Jersey. He returns to his great-uncle’s home on weekends and for holidays and school recess periods. The court dismissed the petition without prejudice, finding petitioner failed to respond to its request that it be provided with confirmation from the U.S. Customs and Immigration Services that Jason may be lawfully adopted by Wallace C., given the fact that Jason is admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant on an F-1 student visa. The court noted the petition appears to be an “inartfully veiled attempt to utilize this State’s adoption statute to circumvent the immigration laws of the United States.” The court therefore held that it cannot proceed upon the adoption petition and made no final determination as to whether the proposed adoption should be approved.
