Department of Social Welfare v. Superior Court

In Department of Social Welfare v. Superior Court (1969) 1 Cal.3d 1, the Supreme Court concluded the "main purpose" of the adoption statutes is to promote the welfare of children. ( Id. at p. 6.) The statute permitting an adoption to be set aside within five years in the case of an unknown mental illness was "enacted as a step in the regulatory process to apply in the described situations in which the child proves unable to take part in a normal parent and child relationship . . . ." (Ibid.) The statute encourages adoptions in the first instance and thus promotes the welfare of children available for adoption. (Ibid.)