The concept of modern adoption, as we conceived it, is one of the Family Law institutions that has suffered multiple changes throughout history. Adoption severs all legal ties between the adoptee and his biological family and creates a new permanent legal relationship between the adoptee and his adoptive family. It is characterized by the following elements: finality, replacement of the original filiation, and confidentiality.
The principle of confidentiality in adoption encompasses the legal proceedings and the records. It refers to the drastic limitations of the usual publicity that characterizes other civil matters. Other terms that are used to accomplish this purpose are: “secret”,