A Adoption Atty David H Baum

We first learned of David from a friend who had used his services a number of ago years to successfully adopt a child. After a consultation we felt confident that David was honest, experienced and was someone we could count on to help us reach our dream of adopting a child into our family. David guided us through learning the ropes of the adoption process and what to expect. Once matched with a birth mom David kept us informed of each step and was in constant contact with the birth mom’s attorney. He went out of his way to meet us after hours to make sure paperwork was signed before a deadline. We were successfully matched and feel so blessed to be parenting our child.

A friend recommended David highly. The reason, hands down, that we went with him is how detail oriented he was. We felt comforted that he cared so much about protecting his clients and not leaving anything in his power up to chance. We were expecting a long haul, and were lucky enough to be matched fairly quickly — which was 100% due to David’s extensive network of adoption lawyers. He was one step ahead of any potential snags. At each step of the process my husband and I were more and more sure that we had chosen the right adoption path with David. All the way to the day our adoption was finalized in court — the way he made sure to get us into the courtroom at the perfect time — down to the minute — so that our whole family could be there to celebrate that moment. He really thought of every detail, from legal issues to just thoughtful advice to emotionally navigating such a delicate situation. Our family is forever grateful to him.

David Baum is the reason that we have our son today. He is experienced (30+) years. If there are bumps, and there are in most adoptions, he has been through it before and he will get your baby in your arms.
Dave has reciprocal relationships with lawyers across the country, so hiring Dave is like hiring 20 lawyers – your Dear Birthmom letter will be in the hands of lawyers you have never even talked to! Our son was home with us just 6 months after we started putting our profile out there. We will forever be grateful to Dave and his wonderful staff.

Just as Christina S. described. Unless you already have a birth mother that has selected you, do not use David Baum. He’ll promise you 6 months to 1 year to be matched and then 2 years later he’ll claim that he never told you that. Even though it’s still listed on his website…
He was incredibly condescending. So even asking him the smallest question is this game of «is it worth his snappy response?» For someone working in a very very emotionally charged line of business this is absolutely ridiculous. His advertising is very weak, so you’ll be expected to do your own. Which will cost you an additional $ 4k a month at his recommended papers. And you’ll have to filter out your own spam calls from good calls. He’s merely your consultant that berates you.
And he makes you snail mail everything… wow seriously? You can’t e-​mail in 2014? He also charges for each birth mother letter he sends out to potential matches. Which the facilitator does not. Anywhere from $ 15 to $ 75 for these FedEx rushes.
We ended up going through a facilitator who cost about the same as David did. I would gladly pay the facilitator double to take back what I paid David. We were matched in 3 months with the facilitator after almost 2 years of waiting with David. She did all of the advertising and work for us. She was kind and patient, you know, all of the things that David is not.
We were matched out of state which is an ADDITIONAL fee for David. Check the fee schedule closely. He doesn’t explain it clearly, and again, asking a question is like shoving your hand into a rabid dog cage. I can’t tell you how many times he’s made us cry from frustration and anger.
And people put up with it because they think he’s the best! He literally did nothing for us. All he did was refer us to the facilitator. We had an agency that represented the birth mother in the birth mother’s state, and once we were matched David had us talk only to them. We had to hire another lawyer in that state as well to finalize. AND when we encountered some bumps, my social worker called David to ask if he received some paper work, and he sent us a bill for over $ 100!!! Because he claimed that «once we went to the other agency we were no longer his customers.» My social worker had to call him out on it. To which he made us call if we wanted to get the charges reversed. I said «David, this is for the adoption we PAID you for already. You said you WOULDN’T charge for each phone call.» He claimed that he’d remove it to keep us happy customers. Oh please. It was the straw that broke the camels back. $ 10,000 for doing nothing but leading us down the wrong path of blowing advertising money with the Thrifty Nickel who NO ONE reads, and then this additional bill for taking a 10 minute conversation regarding the same adoption we already paid you to sit around on?!
Not only that, but the lawyer in the other state was $ 3,000 and the agency that represented the birth mother was about $ 6,000. Save your money, and spend your $ 10,000 there. Don’t waste it on David. Message me and I can give you the name of our facilitator. The only reason he gets 2 stars is because he was able to read signs in the birth mother whether they were legit or not. Not worth $ 10,000 though…

My first domestic adoption was in 2001. I am a single parent and work in technology. In 2000 I started doing a deep dive into agency vs attorney. I attended at least 4 agency orientations in Southern California. I was not impressed and somewhat discouraged how the agencies use a sliding scale in some cases and in others they relayed that I would have a harder time as a single parent than a married couple to get matched. I then found David Baum on the internet and loved what I read. I decided to drive to meet with him and everything he said was exactly what I was hoping to hear. I am a client like every other client and treated the same way, no hidden fees, up front estimate of adoption expenses upon match. It was a dream come true. At that visit I paid my retainer and in two months of paying my retainer I had my son home with me! This is not the norm, I can say it was a perfect fit at the perfect time. It was a shock as I didn’t have time to prepare for anything! He is now 13 and we are living the dream because David B helped make it happen.
November 2012 I decided I wanted to adopt again. I called David and paid my retainer and was very eager to add to my family. This time it took a bit longer which is more within the norm and my baby was born in Feb 2014!!! I had to work with an agency to get the home study completed and I can truly say using David was the best for me and my family. Agencies like to instill their beliefs on what is best for you and your adoption situation and they don’t always get it right. It is critical that you look at your unique situation and base your decisions on what is best for your family. David works hard and is available 24X7 as you are going through the fast and furious time when the baby is born and relinquishment has to take place. He is always professional and works his best on your behalf. I truly can say that both my domestic adoptions through David was a blessing from God. I would use him again if I ever thought I could afford to do another!!! Please take time to ask all your questions and vet all your concerns, there isn’t a question he can’t get an answer to!!! Love him and all his staff! They are family to me.

After experiencing two failed placements through the foster care system, my wife and I decided to pursue private adoption. We spoke with a number of attorneys, and decided to retain David Baum, who came highly recommended by a friend. Within two and a half months of meeting Dave, we met our daughter’s birthparents.
Dave’s extensive experience as a private adoption attorney allowed us to feel comfortable in trusting the process. We felt he genuinely cared about us, the birth parents, and making a successful match. He spent a considerable amount of time helping us develop our birthmother letter, a critical first step in securing a match. His meticulous attention to detail ensured that all aspects of the adoption went as smoothly as possible. He was extremely responsive, replying to all of our communications immediately. His guidance throughout the process was invaluable, and his high ethical standards were evident throughout our experience with him.
Within 5 months of bringing our daughter home from the hospital, our adoption was finalized. Our family is enjoying the best holiday season ever, due in large part to David Baum. We have recommended him already to a number of prospective adoptive parents.

(This review is for David Baum’s work in domestic newborn adoption — we’ve heard great things about his work on simple legal cases of step-​child adoption, etc.)
We met with David Baum and a few other adoption attorneys when we first jumped into the pool. We liked Mr. Baum as a person, but ultimately didn’t go with him because we were underwhelmed by his approach to adoption profiles and networking, and his fees expire after 2 years. (That seems like a long time, but average domestic newborn wait times are climbing above that these days.)
A friend and former client of Mr. Baum also told me that he doesn’t refund or roll over his fees if you suffer a disruption, so you have to pay more fees to try again. As we didn’t experience that first-​hand, I would ask Mr. Baum about that if you’re interested in hiring him.

I was referred to family law attorney, Mr. David Baum, by my family estate planning attorney. I met with him to have my questions about the adoption process answered. He is very knowledgeable and most helpful in breaking down the process into manageable and understandable steps and milestones. I recommend David Baum to anyone who needs an extremely proficient family law attorney. This is the professional that you want with you on your side.

David Baum handled the adoption of our son last year. Baum is a great lawyer, he is extremely knowledgeable, detail oriented and «buttoned up.» In addition, he is very caring and considerate, and shares important guidance in terms of how to handle sensitive situations etc. When it comes to something as important as adoption you want the best on your team, Baum is that person.

I was turned away from several agencies and other adoption lawyers because of the difficulty of my case, I came across Mr. Baum and have been so grateful for that day. It has been a year since the adoption and EVERYONE involved is so happy and we could not have done it so easily without Mr. Baum. What everyone made out to be so difficult, he made seem like breeze. But I am glad I was turned away, otherwise I would not have found Mr. Baum.

My wife and I owe so much to David and his office for helping us through the adoption of our child. From the first day we met him, David worked diligently to help us through the tough process. He guided us every step of the way and we couldn’t have done it without his help. David and his office provided excellent, knowledgeable, and friendly service. We were treated like we were family. For anyone who has gone through an adoption process, its a tough process, so to have so much support and guidance helped more than words can say. Thank you David and your wonderful team.

After doing significant and thorough research throughout the state of California on both agencies AND adoption attorneys, I came across David Baum. I will always be thankful for that day. David is knowledgeable, efficient, passionate and very well connected throughout the adoption world. He offers more than just his knowledge, rather a guiding hand to navigate the complex waters of adoption at all phases of the cycle. He holds and maintains high expectations for a successful outcome and while there are no guarantees in the process, David leaves no stone unturned! One of the items that impressed me, as an adoptive mother, was his proclivity to be very selective and meticulous in his interview and selection process of birth mothers, while making sure he carefully matched one situation to another. Once the birth mother had selected us, he and his office worked very quickly to help expedite all of the necessary paperwork, while we made the arrangements to fly to another state to meet with her and her family. He offered his guidance and unwavering support in preparation for that trip (you can imagine the nerves that stepped in once we knew we were headed to actually meet with her!). After returning from the weekend and initial meeting, David was immediately on the phone with us Monday morning to let us know that all was a «go» from their standpoint. Three weeks later, we were on a plane and in the hospital that evening to welcome our son into the world. We remain thankful everyday for that day and that first phone call to David. We have recommended him to a number of other couples who have worked with him and the feedback to us has always been the same: He is fantastic! We recommend him without hesitation!