'I am truly sorry' A Utah adoption agency closes suddenly.

A Utah adoption agency is closing Friday, weeks after local landlords cracked down on the firm for failing to pay rent on apartments intended to be used by pregnant mothers.

Sandi Benson, director of Brighter Adoptions, confirmed in a text to the Salt Lake Tribune that the 10-year-old organization was shutting down. She stated that the agency is “working with existing clients and birth mothers in active cases to facilitate appropriate transitions, finalizations, and continuity of care.” She declined to respond to questions about how many mothers or adoptive parents were affected by the closure, or whether anyone was living in the units that are facing eviction…

by: Paighten Harkins

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) A legal notice on the door of a Layton apartment leased to the Brighter Adoptions director on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026.

It is unclear how many mothers, or adoptive parents, are affected by the closure. In 2021, Benson said in a deposition that her agency handled about 50 adoptions a year. The founders of Utah Adoption Rights, an organization that advocates for adoption reform, estimate that at least 20 current cases are affected….