View Full Version : How to file for abandonment in Michigan
dampire91
Jun 2, 2013, 07:34 AM
Looking to see how I go about filing for abandment for my sons bio father. He has a step father but his bio father hasn't seen him in 2 years and hasn't paid child support in almost a year. I've had no contact with him in 2 years. And he moved to Washington state in November.
JudyKayTee
Jun 2, 2013, 08:14 AM
If you could file for abandonment, what would you hope to gain?
The child cannot, in general, be adopted without the consent of the birth father.
dampire91
Jun 2, 2013, 08:26 AM
For getting his rights removed completely
cdad
Jun 2, 2013, 09:02 AM
For getting his rights removed completely
Is he court ordered to pay child support? Is there a visitation order in affect?
JudyKayTee
Jun 2, 2013, 09:09 AM
And your purpose in getting his rights removed? You don't want to receive child support, you don't want him to have visitation, you want your husband to adopt the child, something else?
And, yes, Cdad asked a very good question - what does the Court Order (if there is one) say?
Are you pursuing child support from him?
dampire91
Jun 2, 2013, 09:17 AM
He has an order but does not pay he has a warrant and suspended license. He has no visition I got it removed after 2 months with no contact. I'm trying to get his rights removed and have my husband adopt.
JudyKayTee
Jun 2, 2013, 09:47 AM
It is almost impossible to adopt without the written consent of the father, whether he's an absentee father or not. Approach him with signing the adoption papers and not having to pay support. He might agree.
You, of course, need an experienced Attorney because you don't want the bio dad to show up years from now and attempt to reverse the adoption for fraud or other grounds.
ScottGem
Jun 2, 2013, 09:59 AM
He has an order but does not pay he has a warrent and suspended license. He has no visition I got it removed after 2 months with no contact. I'm trying to get his rights removed and have my husband adopt.
The bolded portion is the key here. You are going about this backwards. You have no chance of just getting his rights terminated. He's not using those rights so a court is not going terminate them. You cannot file for abandonment because its not a charge it is grounds. This is why you were asked what you hope to gain.
So what you need to do is file to have your husband adopt. As part of that filing the father will need to be contacted and agree to the adoption. So how you go about this is to retain an attorney to prepare the adoption petition. I would not recommend doing this without an attorney. The attorney will prepare all the paperwork including the father's relinquishment of rights.
dampire91
Jun 2, 2013, 10:13 AM
His bio father will not contact me and I have no way of contacting him. I have been trying to him to sign off for years and will not. I have talked to adoption lawyers and they say he needs to go wirhout contact and without pating child support for 2 years. But I can't do adooption without his rights being removed. So my main goal is ro get rights removed first and adoption after. So I'm trying to get that going as fast as possible.
cdad
Jun 2, 2013, 10:32 AM
His bio father will not contact me and I have no way of contacting him. I have been trying to him to sign off for years and will not. I have talked to adoption lawyers and they say he needs to go wirhout contact and without pating child support for 2 years. But I can't do adooption without his rights being removed. So my main goal is ro get rights removed first and adoption after. So I'm trying to get that going as fast as possible.
What happens is that you end up doing both at the same time. That way the adoption can continue. Your not going to get his rights removed without it being on the table at the same time.
ScottGem
Jun 2, 2013, 10:32 AM
His bio father will not contact me and I have no way of contacting him. I have been trying to him to sign off for years and will not. I have talked to adoption lawyers and they say he needs to go wirhout contact and without pating child support for 2 years. But I can't do adooption without his rights being removed. So my main goal is ro get rights removed first and adoption after. So I'm trying to get that going as fast as possible.
And, again, that is backwards. Courts are not going to remove his rights unless it is to clear the way for an adoption. So to get his rights removed, it has to be part of the adoption package.
Your attorney will know what to do to contact him or satisfy the courts that you have tried to get him to agree to the adoption.
JudyKayTee
Jun 2, 2013, 11:25 AM
Hire a Private Investigator to find him - I do it all the time.