Stepparent Adoptions
In a stepparent adoption you need to get the consent of the birth parent or have the birth parent's rights terminated.
In most states, a stepparent adoption is much easier to complete than a nonrelative adoption. The procedure is generally the same as for other types of adoption, but specific steps are sometimes waived or streamlined. For instance, the waiting period, a home study, and even the adoption hearing are sometimes dispensed with in a stepparent adoption. The only difficult step may be getting the other birth parent to consent to the adoption.
Getting Consent
In all stepparent adoptions, the child's other birth parent will need to consent to the adoption because he or she is the other legally recognized parent. If the other birth parent refuses to consent, the adoption will not be allowed unless his or her parental rights are terminated for some other reason -- abandonment, unfitness, or failure to support the child, for example.
It may be difficult to get the consent of the other birth parent, because giving consent to the adoption means giving up all parental rights, including any right to visit the child or make decisions regarding issues such as medical treatment or education. Of course, some birth parents are willing to consent to stepparent adoptions because they agree that it's in the child's interest--or because they will no longer be responsible for child support once their parental rights are terminated.
| Emotional Issues |
| Stepparent adoptions can be complicated when the non-custodial biological parent is still alive and in contact with the child. There may be no legal reason why the adoption cannot take place, but the emotional impact of the adoption also needs to be considered.
The impact on the child should be of primary importance. If an adoption will bring stability to your new family and help your child feel more secure, it may be the right choice. But no matter how well your child gets along with a stepparent, the child may still feel conflicting loyalties between his or her stepparent and birth parent, and this may be hard to handle. Generally speaking, the less contact a child has with the other birth parent, the more sense it makes for an adoption to take place.
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