Why I Practice in Family Law: "I practice family formation law because it is constructive. Helping build families is a tremendous privilege that I will never take for granted."
Foster Care Adoption, Stepparent + Second Parent Adoption, Domestic Infant Adoption, Trust and Wills, Surrogacy, International Surrogacy, ART Law + Gamete Donor Agreements, Adult Adoption, Relative Adoption, Parentage Orders
Janna has been practicing in her hometown of Seattle since 2003. After starting her career as a litigator, she began building her family formation practice after adopting her daughter in 2008. In 2015, she joined the Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys, served on the board of trustees from 2021 to 2024 and is currently president-elect of the Academy.
Her practice includes all aspects of adoption, including complex cases involving the Indian Child Welfare Act, interstate placements, stepparent, second-parent and even third-parent adoptions and contested cases. She also represents birth parents who are considering an adoption plan. In addition to adoption, Janna represents parties in surrogacy contracts, egg and sperm donation agreements and embryo donation contracts.
Washington is considered one of the best states in the country for assisted reproduction, with clear laws, a straightforward legal process for establishing parentage and strong protections for unmarried parents and same-sex couples. Because the arrival of a child often prompts new parents to complete estate planning, Janna prepares wills, powers of attorney and medical directives to ensure that her clients’ loved ones are cared for in the event of an emergency.
With her litigation background and experience as an adoptive parent, she brings a strategic and compassionate approach to all her cases. She understands the anxiety and intensity of taking a less conventional path to parenthood and helps her clients navigate both the practical and emotional aspects of the process.
Janna captained the women’s volleyball team at Dartmouth and was a strength and conditioning All-American in 1999.
