Michael Woods
Question:57 Dr. Woods asked the Minister for Health if adoptions granted in the Republic of Guatemala will be entered by the Adoption Board in its Register of Foreign Adoptions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5630/97]
Written Answers. - Foreign Adoptions.
The Adoption Board has a central role in examining the adoption laws of various countries in order to establish whether adoptions effected under those laws are entitled to be recognised under Irish law. The board has been seeking for some time to secure an expert opinion from a lawyer in Guatemala on the adoption law of that jurisdiction. It will not be in a position to decide whether or not adoptions effected in Guatemala qualify for recognition under either the Adoption Act, 1991 or the new legislation which will come into effect when the Adoption (No. 2) Bill, 1996 is enacted, until this opinion is available.