A residency requirement in Malawi has prevented Madonna from adopting a second child from that African nation, a judge and a lawyer told the Associated Press on Friday.

The news service described the judge as a witness not involved in Friday’s court ruling, and the lawyer as another who was present at the time of the decision. Both the judge and the lawyer spoke on conditions of anonymity.

The residency requirement for prospective parents is 18 to 24 months in Malawi. Madonna has homes in New York and London.

Madonna, 50, adopted her son, David Banda, now 3, from Malawi in 2008; she was granted custody and allowed to take him out of the country two years earlier. That adoption caused controversy, including claims that her application received special status because of her celebrity.

The singer, a single mother, was planning to adopt 3½-year-old Mercy James, whom she first met in an orphanage in 2006. Her other children are daughter Lourdes, 12, and son Rocco, 8.

There has been no word on whether Madonna intends to appeal the ruling.

When her Malawian lawyer, Alan Chinula, broke the news that High Court judge Esme Chombo had rejected her petition to adopt a Malawian toddler, an incredulous Madonna “kept wringing her hands,” a source at Kumbali Lodge, where the pop star is staying, tells PEOPLE. Madonna, who filed her adoption papers on Monday, was not present in court.

At the hearing, the judge said child welfare officers are required to find suitable prospective parents and “not someone who just flies in and out.” In terms of the child, “I think the welfare of Chifundo [African for 'Mercy'] will be better served if she grows within the environment of the culture of Malawi,” she said.

The judge also said that because Madonna is already assisting other orphans, Chifundo will still benefit from star’s generosity.

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Madonna visits the Raising Malawi Kabbalah School in the Namitete District Lilongwe, Malawi, on March 29, 2009, accompanied by her daughter Lourdes Leon, and son, David Banda. Madonna touched down over the weekend in her bid for 4-year-old Chifundo James, whose name translates in English to Mercy. The girl’s 18-year-old mother died shortly after giving birth and it’s unclear if the child has any surviving relatives. This morning, Madonna attended an hour-long closed-door hearing in Malawi’s Lilongwe High Court as Judge Esme Chombo heard her application to adopt a second child from the African country. No official ruling was made, and Madonna’s case has been adjourned until Friday, when a second hearing will take place in the nation’s capital.

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Madonna did not get her adoption approved.

The singer, 50, spent about an hour in court Monday morning in the Malawi capital of Lilongwe, where a judge delayed ruling on her application to adopt a second Malawian child, 3-year-old Mercy James, until Friday. (The child’s name was listed on Monday’s court docket.)

Court official Thomson Ligowe would not reveal any other information.

Mercy James’ grandmother, 61-year-old Lucy Chekechiwa, is reportedly against Madonna’s decision to adopt. (Mercy James’ single teen mother died at age 18; the girl’s father is believed to be alive.)

“Why doesn’t this singer pick other children?” she told Britain’s The Sun. “It is stealing. I want to go to to court. I won’t let her go.”

It is unknown if Chekechiwa was at court Monday.

Madonna arrived in the African nation Sunday with her children, Lourdes, 12, and sons Rocco, 8, and David, 3, whom she adopted from Malawi in 2007.

Criticism over her decision to adopt continued to brew over the weekend. (more…)

Officials have confirmed Madonna is adopting a 3-year-old girl, Mercy James (above), from Malawi.

“The adoption is going ahead,” Malawi’s Director of Child Welfare Services, Penstone Kilembe, tells Usmagazine.com. “It has been at an advanced stage for some time.”

Mercy will be Madonna’s fourth child, and second child from the African country. David Banda, 3, was adopted in 2006.

The girl is from the “Mchinji Home of Hope orphanage. She has no father and mother, they both died…We finished the assessment yesterday in readiness for the courts next week,” an official at the ministry of Gender and Child Development told Reuters.

Madonna is due in court Monday. Her rep Liz Rosenberg has yet to comment.

Earlier this week, New York’s Daily News reported that Madonna’s attempts to adopt again could be hindered due to her love life.

“Our official policy is that we do not encourage our children to be sent into broken homes,” a senior official from Malawi’s Ministry of Women and Child Welfare Development said of the singer, who has romanced 22-year-old model Jesus Luz and Alex Rodriguez since divorcing Guy Ritchie last year. “Her relationships may negatively affect the adoption of Mercy.”

Madonna has expressed interest in wanting to adopt another child.

“Many people – especially our Malawian friends – say that David should have a Malawian brother or sister,” she recently told Malawi’s The Nation newspaper. “It’s something I have been considering but would only do if I had the support of the Malawian people and the government.”

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Madonna is trying to adopt another child from the impoverished African country of Malawi.

An official at the Malawi welfare department confirms to the Associated Press that the singer, 50, has filed adoption papers. Another source tells the AP that she is visiting Malawi this weekend and that a court could hear her adoption case as early as Monday. A U.S. government official also confirms the AP’s report.

Her rep Liz Rosenberg has yet to comment.

Earlier this week, New York’s Daily News reported that Madonna’s attempts to adopt again could be hindered due to her love life.

“Our official policy is that we do not encourage our children to be sent into broken homes,” a senior official from Malawi’s Ministry of Women and Child Welfare Development said of the singer, who has romanced 22-year-old model Jesus Luz and Alex Rodriguez since divorcing Guy Ritchie last year. “Her relationships may negatively affect the adoption of Mercy.”

Madonna adopted son David Banda, 3, from Malawi in 2006. She has expressed interest in wanting to adopt another child.

“Many people – especially our Malawian friends – say that David should have a Malawian brother or sister,” she recently told Malawi’s The Nation newspaper. “It’s something I have been considering but would only do if I had the support of the Malawian people and the government.”

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While Madonna is keen to adopt a little Malawaian girl, Mercy James, officials aren’t so sure.  Her divorce, and subsequent relationships with Alex Rodriguez and Jesus Luz have thrown the stability of her home life into question and government officials in Malawi aren’t happy about it.

A senior official from Malawi’s Ministry of Women and Child Welfare Development said: “Our official policy is that we do not encourage our children to be sent into broken homes. Madonna’s relationships may negatively affect the adoption of Mercy.”

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photo: bauer-griffin

According to the Daily Mail, Madonna has forbidden her 22 year old boyfriend, Jesus Luz from accepting any phone calls in her presence, unless it’s an emergency.

“His family claims they always know when he’s with her because they can’t get him on the phone. And it’s true. He’ll see his phone ringing and he just has to let it go.”

However, Madonna allows herself to chat away on her phone whenever she wants.

The source added to Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper: “If her phone rings and she wants to take the call, she’ll do it. This is not a relationship of equals.”

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 photo: fame