Regulation of Intercountry Adoption: Can the Abuses Come to an End

Because the demand for adoptable children outweighs the supply, adopting parents are increasingly exploring intercountry adoption as an alternative. Unfortunately, numerous abuses have been reported in the process. Out of frustration, as well as national pride, the sending nations have started to react against those abuses, which at times have been real, but sometimes have been just fabricated, like the rumor that foreigners buy babies to use their vital organs for transplant. Locally, restrictive legislation has been enacted, and at the regional and international level, treaties and international conventions have been adopted.

This Article examines these efforts with a critical view.