In Re Philip S.

OPINION

This case, in which the underlying dispute revolves around the petitioner’s professed need to have access to the records of his own adoption, involves a clash of rights — each of which deserves respect, even though they cannot be reconciled with each other. The petitioner asserts that his religious convictions are of such a magnitude that the confidentiality that ordinarily attaches to adoption records should be subordinated to his convictions. In our judgment, the petitioner has failed to proffer adequate proof that he is entitled to such a result.

The petitioner was born in 1971. He…