On the recognition and effects of adoption abroad, competent Local Courts – Family Courts (Sec. 6 Subsec. 1 Act on the Effects of Adoption (AdWirkG).
The court with competence for the proceedings on the recognition and effects of adoption abroad is the family court in the geographical jurisdiction of which a Higher Regional Court is located, for the geographical jurisdiction of this Higher Regional Court; Schöneberg Local Court adjudicates matters in the the Chamber Court’s jurisdiction.
Jurisdiction on the basis of locality lies with the Local Court in the geographical jurisdiction of which the adoptive parent or one of the adoptive parents has his or her habitual residence. In the event that no adoptive parent has his or her habitual residence within the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Local Court has competence within whose district the adoptive child’s habitual residence is located in. If the adoptive child does not have his or her habitual residence in Germany either, it is Schöneberg Local Court in Berlin which has jurisdiction. If material grounds exist for doing so, it can refer the matter to a different court.
| State (Bundesland) | Local Court | Contact Details: |
|---|---|---|
| Baden-Württemberg | Karlsruhe Local Court | Lammstraße 1-5 76133 Karlsruhe Phone +49 (0) 721 926 5000 (access control) Fax +49 (0) 721 926 6794 |
| Stuttgart Local Court | Hauffstraße 5 70190 Stuttgart Phone +49 (0) 711 921 0 Fax +49 (0) 711 921 3300 | |
| Bavaria | Bamberg Local Court | Synagogenplatz 1 96047 Bamberg (street address) Fax +49 (0) 951 833 2112 |
| Munich Local Court | Linprunstraße 22 80335 Munich Phone +49 (0) 89 5597 06 Fax +49 (0) 89 5597 4900 | |
| Nuremberg Local Court | Fürther Straße 110 90429 Nuremberg Phone +49 (0) 911 32101 Fax +49 (0) 911 3212009 | |
| Berlin | Schöneberg Local Court (Berlin) | Grunewaldstraße 66-67 10823 Berlin Phone +49 (0) 30 90159 0 Fax +49 (0) 30 90159 429 |
| Brandenburg | Brandenburg an der Havel Local Court | Magdeburger Str. 47 14770 Brandenburg an der Havel Phone +49 3381 398 500 Fax +49 (0) 3381 398 640 (administration) or +49 (0) 3381 398 555 (legal matters) |
| Bremen | Bremen Local Court | Ostertorstr. 25-31 28195 Bremen Phone +49 (0) 421 3610 |
| Hamburg | Hamburg Local Court | Sievekingplatz 1 20355 Hamburg Phone +49 (0) 40 42843 3648 Fax +49 (0) 40 42843 4318 |
| Hessen | Frankfurt am Main Local Court | Gerichtsstraße 2 60313 Frankfurt am Main Phone +49 (0) 69 1367 01 Fax +49 (0) 69 1367 2030 |
| Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | Rostock Local Court | Zochstraße 13 18057 Rostock Phone +49 (0) 381 4957 0 Telefax +49 (0) 381 4957 9024 |
| Lower Saxony | Celle Local Court | Mühlenstraße 8 29221 Celle Phone +49 (0) 5141 206 0 |
| Braunschweig Local Court | An der Martinikirche 8 38100 Braunschweig | |
| Oldenburg Local Court | Bahnhofstraße 13 (secondary premises) 26122 Oldenburg Phone +49 (0) 441 220 0 Fax +49 (0) 441 220 3400 | |
| North-Rhine Westphalia | Düsseldorf Local Court | Werdener Straße 1 40227 Düsseldorf Phone +49 (0) 211 8306 0 Fax +49 (0) 211 87565 1160 |
| Cologne Local Court | Luxemburger Straße 101 50939 Köln Phone +49 (0) 221 477 0 Fax +49 (0) 221 477 3333 | |
| Hamm Local Court | Borbergstraße 1 59065 Hamm Phone +49 (0) 2381 909 0 Fax +49 (0) 2381 909 222 | |
| Rhineland-Palatinate | Koblenz Local Court | Karmeliterstraße 14 56068 Koblenz Phone +49 (0) 261 1020 Fax +49 (0) 261 102 1003 |
| Zweibrücken Local Court | Herzogstraße 2 66482 Zweibrücken Phone +49 (0) 6332 8050 Fax +49 (0) 6332 805 198 | |
| Saarland | Saarbrücken Local Court | (Secondary premises at Heidenkopferdell I) Bertha-von-Suttner-Straße 2 66123 Saarbrücken Phone +49 (0) 681 50105 Fax +49 (0) 681 5013700 |
| Saxony | Dresden Local Court | Roßbachstraße 6 01069 Dresden Phone +49 (0) 3514 46 0 Fax +49 (0) 3514 46 48 40 (postal centre) |
| Saxony-Anhalt | Naumburg Local Court | Markt 7 06618 Naumburg Phone +49 (0) 3445 282640 Fax +49 (0) 3445 282642 |
| Schleswig-Holstein | Schleswig Local Court | Lollfuß 78 24837 Schleswig Phone +49 (0) 4621 8150 Fax +49 (0) 4621 815 311 |
| Thüringen | Jena Local Court | Rathenaustraße 13 07745 Jena Phone +49 (0) 3641 307 0 Fax +49 (0) 3641 307 200 |