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    bauer06's Avatar
    bauer06 Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Jul 23, 2009, 06:06 PM
    My fiancée has a daughter but no person on the birth certificate. Can I adopt
    My fiancée and I are planning to get married next July. I would really like to adopt her daughter before this happens. So my question is that she didn't list any one on the birth certificate. We talked to the father last summer and he said that he didn't care if I adopted her. We tried to set up a time for all of us to meet so he could sign over his rights. But he would never show up and gave lame excuses. So we went by his house and he had moved and got his cell phone shut off. I don't know what to do we lived in Indiana but now we live in Illinois. I really would like to adopt her as soon as I can
    Synnen's Avatar
    Synnen Posts: 7,927, Reputation: 2443
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    #2

    Jul 23, 2009, 06:22 PM

    First, most states require that you be married, and married for a specific amount of time before a stepparent adoption can happen.

    Second--you NEED him to sign over his rights. An adoption cannot go forward without that--or at least without a good faith attempt to contact him. Again, laws on what constitutes a good faith attempt vary from state to state.

    Get a lawyer. You absolutely do NOT want to go through the adoption process without one, because any mistake would mean that the adoption might be overturnable.
    Chey5782's Avatar
    Chey5782 Posts: 423, Reputation: 65
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    #3

    Jul 23, 2009, 06:25 PM
    I agree with Syn, get a good lawyer. Adoption is a very serious decision and you need to be as informed as possible, with a good lawyer behind you before going through this process. Good luck with the process, being a dad is about a lot more than the legality of it all. Best Wishes.
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