Delay in adoption procedure in Brazil

a study about the possibility of civil liability of the state

Abstract

The adoption institute is of the utmost importance to ensure that children and adolescents who, for some reason, are not in family life, can have such a guaranteed right. However, analyzing numbers given by the National Council of Justice and legal theory, it is easy to observe the presence of certain deficiency in Brazilian adoption processes. Therefore, the present article has as a general objective to examine the factors that cause slowness in the judiciary Brazilian system regarding to the adoption processes and if there is a possibility to hold the State responsible for the delay in deciding these cases. The research was documental with a descriptive analysis of Brazilian legislation, doctrine and case-laws giving a qualitative approach. We used the dialectical research method, since that facts cannot be considered outside a social context, seeking to analyze contradictions that transcend the matter and present solutions. For the comprehension of the theme, we present the definition of family and adoption as well as their historical evolution, since both concepts had suffered diverse transformations along the years. The main discussion lies in the possibility to point out that the State bears civil liability by the delay in the adoption judicial action. As a conclusion it is possible to affirm that the civil liability of the State, is one of the only ways to guarantee that the damages suffered by child and adolescents during the adoption procedure, are repaired.