Wakilii

In the matter for Adoption of Mirembe Angel by Rudy Ray Lee & Jessica Lee Joe Lee (Adoption Cause No. 32 of 2018)

High Court · [2019] UGHCFD 16 · 2019 Petition Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance petition for inter-country adoption under the Children Act
Decision
Adoption order granted; child legally adopted by petitioners with name change to Mirembe Angel Lee

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court granted an inter-country adoption order to American petitioners who could not physically foster the child for 12 consecutive months but appointed an attorney to do so and made multiple visits to bond with the child. The court applied the doctrine of 'constructive fostering' and exercised its discretion under s.45(4) of the Children Act to waive the physical presence requirement in exceptional circumstances where the child's welfare and best interests were clearly served by the adoption.

Outcome

Adoption order granted; child legally adopted by petitioners with name change to Mirembe Angel Lee

Facts

On 21 August 2016, a taxi guide found an abandoned infant girl in a polythene bag at a garbage heap near Namirembe Road Taxi Park, Kampala. He reported the rescue to Old Kampala Police Station (CFPR/246/2016) and the child was placed at Peace Transitional Home, which named her Mirembe Angel. A care order was granted on 23 March 2017. Efforts to trace the parents through newspaper advertisements and inquiries proved unsuccessful. The petitioners, Rudy Ray Lee and Jessica Lee Joe Lee, a married American couple resident in Kentucky, USA, with two biological daughters, expressed interest in fostering the child in February 2016 through Carolina Adoption Services Agency. They were granted a foster care order on 10 February 2017. Unable to remain in Uganda for 12 consecutive months due to full-time employment and parental responsibilities to their children in the USA, they appointed an attorney to physically care for the child while they visited Uganda four times (Rudy) and three times (Jessica) to bond with her and provided for all her needs.

Issues

  1. Whether the petitioners have fulfilled the requirements for inter-country adoption under the Laws of Uganda.
  2. Whether the petitioners are entitled to the prayers made in the petition.

Orders

  • An order of Adoption of the Child Mirembe Angel by the Petitioners Rudy Ray Lee and Jessica Joe Lee is issued.
  • Petitioners are allowed to change the child's name from Mirembe Angel to Mirembe Angel Lee.
  • The Registrar General of births and deaths shall make an entry recording this adoption in the Adopted Children Register.
  • The Adoption Order shall be furnished to the Consular Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  • Costs of the Petition to be provided for by the petitioners.

Rules and key headnotes

Inter-Country Adoption — Fostering Requirement — Waiver in Exceptional Circumstances
A court may waive the requirement that prospective adoptive parents physically foster a child in Uganda for 12 consecutive months under s.45(4) of the Children Act where exceptional circumstances exist, including where the applicants have stable employment and parental responsibilities abroad, have appointed a capable attorney to provide physical care, have made multiple visits to bond with the child, and have provided for all the child's needs throughout the foster period.
Inter-Country Adoption — Constructive Fostering
The doctrine of 'constructive fostering' applies where prospective adoptive parents who cannot physically remain in Uganda for the required foster period appoint a capable third party to provide physical care while the prospective adoptive parents meet the child's financial and other needs and make regular visits to bond with the child.
Adoption — Best Interests of the Child — Paramount Consideration
In determining whether to grant an adoption order, the court's paramount duty is to consider the welfare and best interests of the child, including assessing whether the prospective adoptive parents can provide a stable, loving home and have the economic means to support the child's development into a productive adult.

Legislation cited (4)

Cases cited (1)

  • In the matter of Amari Daphine (Adoption Cause No. 47 of 2017)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

In the matter for Adoption of Mirembe Angel by Rudy Ray Lee & Jessica Lee Joe Lee (Adoption Cause No. 32 of 2018) [2019] UGHCFD 16 (13 June 2019)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.