(Pictured: Student-Advisor Doug Boyle)

The Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (“M-VETS”) assisted an Army Veteran and his wife in adopting their teenaged granddaughter who has lived with them for more than twelve years. In 2009, the Veteran’s wife was granted legal custody of their granddaughter. When the granddaughter’s biological mother moved out-of-state, the Veteran and his wife decided it was time to file for adoption. As a result, the Veteran and his wife sought the assistance of M-VETS in filing a Petition for Adoption with the Prince William County Circuit Court.

After obtaining consent from the granddaughter and both her biological mother and father, M-VETS was able to file the Petition for Adoption, including all affidavits, proposed orders and vital statistics forms. In March of 2022, the Prince William County Circuit Court entered the Final Order of Adoption, concluding the matter favorably for the Veteran and his family. M-VETS Student Advisor Doug Boyle worked with the Veteran and his wife beginning in the fall of 2021 and was able to resolve the entire matter before the 2021-2022 school year ended.

The Veteran was grateful for M-VETS’s assistance throughout the adoption process.  “My family and I would like to thank [M-VETS] from the bottom of our hearts for the service that you provided us in the adoption of our Granddaughter; we couldn’t have done it without you.”

“We greatly appreciate all of the hard work that [M-VETS] put into the process and we especially thank Doug Boyle for his knowledge and passion for our needs,” said the Veteran.

“We were honored to have the opportunity to finalize this adoption for a very deserving family,” said M-VETS Deputy Director, Leigh Winstead.  “I would like to thank M-VETS Student Advisor Doug Boyle who worked tirelessly on this matter from start to finish.  With Doug’s diligence, we were able to accomplish our client’s goals in a timely manner.”

M-VETS mission is to provide free legal representation to active-duty members of the armed forces, veterans, and their families while offering law students the opportunity to receive supervised, practical legal experience by advocating for those who serve or have served in our United States armed forces. M-VETS provides representation in a variety of matters including Virginia civil litigation matters, uncontested divorces, consumer protection matters, wills and powers of attorney, as well as assisting with matters before the VA and various administrative boards, including discharge upgrades, record corrections, military pay and entitlement matters, and VA disability benefit appeals.