Can my current husband adopt my daughter if the father has not paid support? 23 Answers as of September 19, 2011

Child support and adoptions are two separate issues. As long as your ex has parental rights and does not consent to the adoption of your child, your current husband will not be permitted to adopt. You can speak to an attorney in your area for guidance.

Your husband may or may not be able to adopt your daughter under those circumstances. He should try. The Court can terminate the father's parental rights if the father has neither supported nor contacted his daughter for at least one year. The Court may or may not consider the fact that the father is and/or has been in jail in determining whether or not there is an acceptable reason why the father hasn't contacted his daughter for at least one year. Because the father is in jail, the Court will likely appoint an attorney to represent the father.

You need to file a Petition for Adoption and a Petition to Terminate Parental Rights in the Orphans Court and prove that there are sufficient grounds to terminate the biological father's rights. Child Support issues alone are unlikely to be enough, but it depends upon the specific judge.

The path would likely require a long and expensive court battle from which no result could be promised.

It is likely he can. Call a good adoption attorney to properly terminate his rights and proceed.

In Colorado a step-parent may adopt a step-child without the consent of the father upon proving either (a) that the father has failed to pay child support for the 12 months preceding filing the adoption petition OR (b) that the father has abandoned the child for the 12 months preceding filing the petition. This will require a court proceeding in which the father may defend against the allegations, but if the court is satisfied that the statutory requirements are met, the father's parental rights will be terminated and the child will be considered "available for adoption".

Not likely. The court is not going to take away his parental rights. The court is more likely to make him pay support.

This response is for informational purposes only, and does not form an attorney-client relationship, nor is it to be considered legal advice. Every situation is different and it sounds like you have been going through a difficult time. In most cases where the father has been established, as it appears to be the case here, you cannot simply have your husband adopt your daughter without her fathers consent. First you would have to seek to terminate your daughters fathers parental rights. If your husband wants to adopt your daughter, he really should hire a lawyer to investigate all of the facts, and options he would have available to him.

If the father has not paid court-ordered child support and/or refused to continue a bona fide relationship with the child for at least a period of one year, your current husband can file a petition for adoption without the consent or voluntary termination of parental rights of the biological father, but the father still must be served with a copy of the petition for adoption and will have a chance to object in a contested adoption hearing, if he chooses to do so.

If the biological father has not provided any financial support and has not seen your daughter in some period of time, it may be possible to terminate his parental rights, clearing the way for an adoption.

You will need to determine whether you have grounds to terminate the legal father's parental rights first before you can proceed with an adoption. I would suggest consulting an attorney.

At least in Washington, whether or not the bio-dad has paid support is independent of whether your current spouse may adopt your child. The issue with bio-dad is going to be getting him to consent in writing to the adoption or having the court find him unfit.

If the biological father does not consent to the adoption, then your husband can only adopt your daughter if the biological father's parental rights are terminated by court order on the grounds of abandonment. In addition to "failure to provide support," you also have to be able to allege that he has failed to maintain a parent-child relationship with your daughter for at least six months prior to filing (e.g. that he has not visited, called, sent cards/gifts/etc.). If he has legally abandoned her, then the court can terminate his rights and allow an adoption to proceed. If he has not legally abandoned her, then he retains his parental rights, but you can enforce the orders regarding the child support obligation.