Generally the Supreme Court doesn't hear adoption cases, as most involve
matters of state law exclusively. But today April 16, the Court is hearing
an adoption dispute involving an American Indian father's attempt
to undo the adoption of his infant daughter. Though he had given up his
parental rights to the child, he changed his mind after the adoption was
final and invoked the federal Indian Children Welfare Act, which protects
native Americans from having their child adopted away from them. The local
family court ruled that the child must be returned him, even though she
had lived for most of her life with her adoptive parents. The adopting
parents appealed.
