Arkansas § 5-37-216 Defrauding a prospective adoptive parent

Arkansas Statutes

§ 5-37-216 — Defrauding a prospective adoptive parent

Arkansas § 5-37-216

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This text of Arkansas § 5-37-216 (Defrauding a prospective adoptive parent) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Ark. Code Ann. § 5-37-216 (2026).

Text

(a)As used in this section:

(1)"Aggregate financial benefit" means the total financial benefit received by a person preceding, during, and after the pregnancy of the person;

(2)"Financial benefit" means any cost for prenatal, delivery, or postnatal care, including without limitation reasonable costs for:

(A)Housing;

(B)Food;

(C)Clothing;

(D)Medical expenses; or (E) General maintenance; and (3) "Prospective adoptive parent" means a person who through his or her actions has a stated or unstated intention to begin the process of adopting a minor, whether or not the minor is known to him or her.

(b)A person commits the offense of defrauding a prospective adoptive parent if he or she:

(1)Knowingly obtains a financial benefit from a prospective adoptive parent or from an agent of a pros

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(a) As used in this section: (1) "Aggregate financial benefit" means the total financial benefit received by a person preceding, during, and after the pregnancy of the person; (2) "Financial benefit" means any cost for prenatal, delivery, or postnatal care, including without limitation reasonable costs for: (A) Housing; (B) Food; (C) Clothing; (D) Medical expenses; or (E) General maintenance; and (3) "Prospective adoptive parent" means a person who through his or her actions has a stated or unstated intention to begin the process of adopting a minor, whether or not the minor is known to him or her. (b) A person commits the offense of defrauding a prospective adoptive parent if he or she: (1) Knowingly obtains a financial benefit from a prospective adoptive parent or from an agent of a prospective adoptive parent with a purpose to defraud the prospective adoptive parent or the agent of the prospective adoptive parent of the financial benefit; and (2) Does not: (A) Consent to the adoption; or (B) Complete the adoption process. (c) Defrauding a prospective adoptive parent is a: (1) Class B felony if: (A) The aggregate financial benefit is two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or more; or (B) The person has previously been convicted under this section; (2) Class C felony if the aggregate financial benefit is five hundred dollars ($500) or more but less than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500); or (3) Class A misdemeanor if the aggregate financial benefit is less than five hundred dollars ($500).