How do step parent adoptions work in Ohio and what are the benefits of hiring Goldman & Rosenthal as your step parent adoption attorney in Columbus, Ohio?
If both parents are agreeable, a step parent adoption in Ohio can be completed without legal hurdles. All rights and obligations to the child of the biological parent are terminated when the adoption is finalized, the step parent takes on all rights and responsibilities as the child’s legal parent and a new birth certificate is issued for the child.
If the adoptive step parent and the biological parent later divorce, the step parent would be required to financially support the child. The step parent may also be granted custody or visitation as part of the divorce decree.
The adoption process starts when the petitioner completes a Petition for Adoption. The petition requires the person seeking the adoption to provide basic and personal information regarding the step parent and child. Some counties in Ohio require the petitioner to submit information regarding employment, previous marriages, military service and other legal children. A step parent adoption has to be finalized in the probate court of the county where the child resides.
When the petition is completed, the child’s other biological parent will be notified of the potential adoption. There are a few exceptions where the adoption can take place without the biological parent’s consent. If the step parent and biological parent can prove the child’s other biological parent has not provided financial support or communicated with the child for twelve months prior to the adoption petition, the court may terminate the biological parent’s rights without that parents’ consent.
The probate court will require home visits and reference letters before approving the adoption. Medical records, fingerprints and a criminal background check must also be submitted to the probate court. At the end of the adoption hearing, the court may grant a temporary or permanent decree. If the decree is temporary, the adoption can be finalized in six months.
A lawyer can help a biological parent and step parent prove abandonment, nonsupport or failure to communicate with the child by the other parent. The experienced family law attorneys at Goldman & Rosenthal can help the biological parent and step parent terminate the biological parent’s rights to the child, with or without that parent’s consent.
Why hire Goldman & Rosenthal Attorneys At Law to help you file for a step parent adoption in Columbus, Ohio?
Going through a stepparent adoption in Ohio can be simple if you have an attorney by your side. In step parent adoptions, some of the steps involved in other adoption cases are streamlined and in some cases waived. The following are some of the steps involved in the adoption process and how a lawyer can help:
Getting Consent
In stepparent adoptions, the legal or birth parent of the child who is giving up their rights has to agree to the adoption. If that parent does not give consent, then you will be unable
to adopt the child unless that parent has failed to provide financial support or otherwise communicate with the child for the twelve month period immediately preceding the filing of the adoption petition.
One of the reasons parents consent to an adoption is because the completion of the adoption terminates that parent’s obligation to pay child support.
Emotional Issues
One of the things that arise in step parent adoptions is the emotional impact it will have on the child. Your lawyer has to prove to the other parent that the adoption will make the new family more stable and that the child will feel more secure.