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The Steps to Adoption
Pitt must clear these hurdles to become an adoptive dad• Wait out a California-mandated 180-day minimum supervisory period so that the courts can perform legwork and documentation. "He's not going to get any special treatment," says L.A. adoption attorney David Radis.
• Visit with a licensed social worker, who'll drop by Pitt's Malibu home as many as four times to study his relationship with Zahara and Maddox and confirm that the environment is suitable.
• Obtain letters from friends or family who can attest to his character and relationship with Jolie's children.
• Undergo a fingerprint check, run through Child and Family Services, to confirm that he has never been arrested for child abuse.
• Finally, Pitt, Jolie, Maddox and Zahara must all attend a hearing in which Jolie relinquishes her rights as the sole parent and Pitt assumes equal financial responsibility for the kids. Says Radis: "legally, you must support your children until they become adults."
• By Jason Lynch. Sharon Cotliar in New York City, Maureen Harrington in Los Angeles, Kate Klise in Springfield, Christine Kilpatrick in Calgary and Pete Norman in London
