My daughter's biological father has not had contact with her since she was 2. She will be 10 next month. I have been with her "dad" for almost 8 years and they would both like him to adopt her. She really wants his last name like her younger sister and her parents. Her sperm doner has moved out of state and I am not sure which one he is in now. This is something that is very important to her!
Also, does anyone know if I can do this myself without a lawyer?
2006-06-05 16:06:36 · 5 answers · asked by shanonda 2 in Family & Relationships ➔ Family
I live in Michigan. Also he has been ordered to pay child support for 9 years. He has never paid a penny. The Foc will do nothing to locate him, I have tried. They still have him at my old address from 9 years ago, even though I have updated his info.
2006-06-05 16:16:21 · update #1
If the biologcial father has not been in her life since she was 2 years old, then I am guessing that he has never paid child support either. I do not know how things work in your state, but look into filing for child support through the courts. Put the locating on THEM. Once he is located he will have to come up with the back child support or face jail. The option of terminating rights could be presented to him at that time. (Kind of like sign here and get out of jail free). That is how my father had to do when it came to adopting my sister. You would be surprised how quickly they sign to stay free.
2006-06-05 16:12:44 · answer #1 · answered by adagia27 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you really need a lawyer for this. This is one of those issues that you want to make sure is completely done right so that he cannot come back into the picture in the future.
In many states, after a period of no contact, you can have the parental rights terminated. Since he has not paid support in 9 years, and hasn't seen her at all in 8 years, I'm sure you would meet the requirements for no contact.
If you can't afford a lawyer right now, you might want to see if you can do a child name change. Do a google or yahoo search on name change minor and the name of your state to get information on how to do this. This way, at least you will all have the same name.
2006-06-06 03:30:41 · answer #2 · answered by Mama Pastafarian 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In the state of Ohio they put a notice in the classfieds to the parent at large with a certain reply date, if they don't respond by then it's all free and clear. I'm not sure about other state's laws though, talk to a lawyer about it hun!!!!!
2006-06-05 16:10:50 · answer #3 · answered by mizzzzthang 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I doubt you can do that pro se. You should at least consult with an attorney to find out the steps involved before trying to do this on your own. Besides, if this is so important to your entire family, why isn't it worth the cost? I understand "broke," I live there myself, but would work something out for payments if this were my situation.
2006-06-05 16:17:04 · answer #4 · answered by webfly2000 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
every state has their guidelines but if he has had no contact for x amount of time I believe you can have it terminated. Contact you local social services or child support people. They could probably guide you.
2006-06-06 05:01:27 · answer #5 · answered by Molly 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋