Colorado Springs Stepparent Adoption Attorneys
Representing Prospective Adoptive Stepparents
In some families, a child’s biological mother or father is no longer in the picture, but their surviving or present parent has married someone new. Many stepparents wish to legally recognize and establish their relationships with stepchildren. The process to do so is called stepparent adoption.
At the Law Office of Greg Quimby, P.C., we represent stepparents in their efforts to adopt their stepchildren. After a stepparent adoption is successfully finalized, you will be recognized as the child’s legal parent. Let our stepparent adoption attorneys in Colorado Springs help you navigate this complex process.
Call (719) 212-4227 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
Colorado Springs Stepparent Adoption Guide
To file for a stepparent adoption, you must be married to the custodial biological parent. Both you and the biological parent will have to consent to the adoption. This is a big responsibility because once the stepparent adoption is granted, the stepparent now has the same rights and responsibilities as the biological parent.
Legal Steps for Adopting as a Stepparent in Colorado
After determining that you and your spouse are interested in a stepparent adoption, the major hurdle that you must overcome is terminating the non-custodial biological parent’s parental rights. The non-custodial biological parent may be willing to consent to the adoption and consent to the termination of his or her parental rights. By consenting to the termination, the non-custodial parent will lose all parental rights and child support responsibilities to the child.
On the other hand, if the non-custodial parent refuses to consent to the adoption and termination, you may have to have a hearing to terminate his or her parental rights.
While the court will consider all the circumstances and what is in the child’s best interests, they will look specifically at the following factors:
- Whether the non-custodial parent is unfit
- Whether the non-custodial parent has had meaningful contact with the child in the 12 months
- Whether the non-custodial parent has paid child support in the last 12 months and whether there is a likelihood of future support
