Our Firm
Amy U. Hickman is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Law and she has practiced law as a member of the Florida Bar since 1989.  She is a founding partner of Hausmann & Hickman, P.A.  Throughout her legal career, Ms. Hickman has focused her career on adoption, juvenile and reproductive law.  She handles private and public adoption placements and represents parties in contested adoption and termination of parental rights cases. Prior to founding Hausmann & Hickman, P.A., Mrs. Hickman was a staff attorney with the Juvenile Advocacy Project of the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County where she advocated on behalf of children in the dependency and delinquency system.  She continues her advocacy on behalf of children through her volunteer positions on the board of Florida Children’s First, a state-wide child advocacy group and Kids Sanctuary, Inc., a group foster home for children with special needs. Mrs. Hickman also devotes her efforts to improving Florida’s adoption laws and practices.  She is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, a member of the Executive Counsel of the Family Law Section of the Florida Bar and Chair of the Adoption and Juvenile Committee of the Family Law Section of the Florida Bar.  She is also a founding board member of the Florida Adoption Counsel.
 

Michelle M. Hausmann is a graduate of the University of Florida and Nova Southeastern University.  She was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1990, and began her legal career as an associate for the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County.  In 1992, Michelle entered the world of private adoption and is very proud of the many wonderful families she has assisted in creating. As a partner with Hausmann & Hickman, P.A., Michelle has continued to provide private adoption representation both within Florida and interstate.  Additionally, Michelle handles step-parent and close-relative adoption, domestication and re-adoption of foreign born children, and has expanded her practice to include gestational surrogacy, pre-planned adoption, donor/recipient contracts, and related reproductive law matters.  In addition to her Florida and American Bar affiliations, Michelle’s memberships include the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, Florida Adoption Council, honorary board membership with the Florida Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) alliance, and associate membership with the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM).  During her free time Michelle enjoys boating, exercise, travel, and sharing down time with her husband and three children.
 

Mary Jean Fried is a graduate of Columbia College in South Carolina.
 She is responsible for the daily management and client relations of all adoption matters handled by Hausmann & Hickman.  Her southern charm and warm caring demeanor set the tone for the loving relationships established through our adoption placements. Mrs. Fried joined the firm in 2003.  She is dedicated to handling each adoption with a high level of professionalism and individual attention.  Mary Jean is an active member of the Palm Beach County Community where she lives with her husband and two boys.
 
 

Anne Adelman is a graduate of Johnson & Wales University in
Providence, Rhode Island.  Mrs. Adelman is responsible for the coordination of the surrogacy matters handled by the firm.  She maintains the surrogacy profiles and relations and works closely with the client’s fertility physicians.  Anne has worked with our firm since 2005. She is invaluable as a surrogate’s source of information before, during and after their pregnancy.  Mrs. Adelman is a long time Florida resident who lives in Lake Worth with her husband and her two children.



 

Mary Laidlaw originally immigrated to Florida from Toronto, Canada.
 She was adopted as an infant and she is the proud grandparent of an adoptive grandson. Through her experience, Mary provides a unique and loving prospective to the adoption matters handled by Hausmann & Hickman, P.A. Mary has worked with the firm since its inception in 1997.  Her memory is the historical database for the many adoptions completed over the years.
The attorney shareholders have actively participated in the changes in Florida Adoption Law.  They took an active role before the Florida legislature in the implementation of the 2003 adoption reforms and they are frequently featured as speakers for groups seeking information on Florida’s adoption and surrogacy laws.  Michelle Hausmann & Amy Hickman are dedicated to the continuing stability of Florida’s reproductive law.

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