In re Adoption of V.C., 2024 IL App (2d) 230275

- Case citation and parties
In re Adoption of V.C., 2024 IL App (2d) 230275 (Ill. App. Ct., 2d Dist., Jan. 11, 2024). Petitioners-appellants: Andrew Fak and Nicole Thompson. Intervenors-appellees: Patrick and Donna Shelton (foster parents).

- Key legal issues
1) Whether the trial court properly denied petitioners’ motion for visitation.
2) Whether the trial court properly dismissed petitioners’ amended adoption petition under section 2-619(a)(9) of the Code of Civil Procedure on the ground that petitioners (a first cousin once removed) were not a “related” person under the Illinois Adoption Act and therefore failed Illinois residency requirements (and relatedly whether interstate placement rules applied).

- Holding / outcome
The appellate court affirmed the trial court’s denial of petitioners’ motion for visitation. It reversed the trial court’s dismissal of the amended adoption petition and remanded for further proceedings.

- Significant legal reasoning (concise)
- Visitation: Petitioners did not cite any statutory or other authority supporting their motion; issues not raised in the trial court are forfeited. Even apart from forfeiture, the nonparent-visitation statute (750 ILCS 5/602.9) limits standing to grandparents, great‑grandparents, siblings, or stepparents — categories that did not include petitioners. The absence of a report of proceedings required the appellate court to presume the trial court had a sufficient factual basis for finding visitation not in the child’s best interests. Therefore denial was affirmed.
- Adoption dismissal: A section 2-619 motion admits the complaint’s well‑pleaded facts but may raise an affirmative matter that defeats the claim; if that affirmative matter does not appear on the face of the pleading, the movant must support the motion with affidavit/evidence. The appellate court found the trial court erred in dismissing the adoption petition on the related‑person/residency ground. The dismissal was improper as a matter of procedure/substance (the opinion reverses the dismissal and remands), meaning petitioners’ adoption claim should proceed rather than be disposed of on the record presented.

- Practice implications for family-law attorneys
- Preserve and cite statutory authority when seeking visitation; ensure proper standing (602.9 limits).
- When facing (or filing) a section 2-619 dismissal based on an “affirmative matter,” provide proper evidentiary support (affidavits/exhibits) because courts cannot grant dismissal on unsupported assertions.
- Carefully analyze and brief the Adoption Act’s “related child” definitions and residency exceptions; disputes over kinship labels (e.g., first cousin once removed) can be outcome‑determinative.
- Preserve the record: secure court reporter or contemporaneous recording; if hearings are unreported, relief on appeal will be limited.