Jude Conn is from the greater Charlotte, North Carolina area. She is a certified professional massage therapist and Reiki Master as well as a contemporary spiritual teacher and holistic life coach. She is also a Closed, Private, Stranger Adoption at two days old. Jude was adopted in the state of Virginia.  Please join me and Jude as we discuss the barriers that exist in procuring adoptee records from Virginia, and how we are affected when we are told that we are the result of a sexual assault. 

Virginia adoptee right to access: an adult adoptee has the right to apply for non-identifying information from their adoption files. The application is a one page document which must be printed, filled out, notarized and submitted for consideration. An adult adoptee may also apply for identifying information, but if they do so, they must show "good cause." The birthparent must consent to the release of this material, and the adoptee must include a signed letter from a doctor affirming that the adopted person has a serious medical condition that should be disclosed to the parent. The Virginia State Department of Social Services may deny any application without explanation. The adoptee must then appeal to a court of law and appear before a judge to make their case. This process is referred to as "Breaking the Seal of Adoption".