53General effect of adoption orders

53 General effect of adoption orders (1) Subject to this Act and to the provisions of any other Act that expressly distinguishes in any way between adopted children and children other than adopted children, upon the making of an adoption order— S. 53(1)(a) substituted by No. 72/1997 s. 12(c). (a) the adopted child shall be treated in law as a child of the adoptive parent or adoptive parents, and the adoptive parent or adoptive parents shall be treated in law as the parent or parents of the child, as if the child had been born— (i) to the adoptive parent; or S. 53(1)(a)(ii) amended by No. 68/2015 s. 12. (ii) to the adoptive parents; (b) the adopted child shall be treated in law as if the adopted child were not a child of any person who was a parent (whether natural or adoptive) of the child before the making of the adoption order, and any such person shall be treated in law as if the person were not a parent of the child; (c) the relationship to one another of all persons (including the adopted child and an adoptive parent or former parent of the adopted child) shall be determined on the basis of the foregoing provisions of this subsection so far as they are relevant; (d) any guardianship of the adopted child ceases to have effect; and (e) any previous adoption of the child (whether effected under the law of Victoria or otherwise) ceases to have effect. (2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), for the purposes of any law relating to a sexual offence, being a law for the purposes of which the relationship between persons is relevant, an adoption order, or the discharge of an adoption order, does not cause the cessation of any relationship that would have existed if the adoption order, or the discharging order, as the case may be, had not been made, and any such relationship shall be deemed to exist in addition to any relationship that exists by virtue of the application of that subsection in relation to that adoption order or by virtue of the discharge of that adoption order. No. 7147 s. 33.