Step-Parent Adoption

Dear Gina Famularo,

I have been married to my wife for 3 years now and I have helped to raise her beautiful daughter since she was 18 months old. Her biological father has never been in the picture, and she has called me dad as long as I can remember. I would like to make it official and adopt her and make it legal. My wife and I have no idea where my daughter’s biological father is located, will that be a problem? Either way I would like to know what I need to do to make this happen! -Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,

In order for you to be able to adopt your wife’s daughter, we must clearly define what adoption is. An adoption action can occur where a child who is not biologically related to one or more parent acquires all of the rights of a natural child. One an adoption is finalized, the adopting parent, which would be you in this case, you are obligated to love and support your wife’s daughter as if she was your own. One common type of adoption is a step parent adoption, which is exactly what you would need. This type of adoption is when a stepparent assumes the role of the natural parent. In this situation, one of the parents is already the natural aren’t of the child, meaning that only the stepparent need to adopt the child. At the end of the adoption process, the stepparent is afforded all of the rights and all of the responsibilities of a natural parent of the child, meaning that only the step-parent needs to adopt the child. At the end of the adoption process, the step parent is afforded all of the rights and all of the responsibilities of a natural parent. If the stepparent later divorces the natural parent, both parents are treated equally under the law. The natural parent will not be given any preference in awarding custody and each parent will be obligated to pay child support. For this reason, the filing of an adoption proceeding is not one which should be taken lightly by the parents. Before a stepparent may adopt the child, the parental rights of one parent must be terminated because the stepparent will replace the role of one of the child's natural parents. This is done by the filing of a lawsuit in either Riverside or Hemet. Once the lawsuit is filed, the child's relatives and natural parent whose rights are being terminated have a chance to object. If they do, there will be a trial to determine the child's best interests. Generally speaking, the process takes six to nine months. Adoption proceedings are complicated and should not be attempted without the help of an experienced adoption attorney. If you are considering an adoption, you are welcome to contact our office to set up a free consultation. -Attorney Gina Famularo