Stepparent Adoption

Stepparent Adoptions in Boulder, Colorado

"Blended families" are more and more common in Colorado and throughout the United States. As divorce and remarriage rates have risen, parents and stepparents find themselves in the position of reconfiguring the family unit to serve the best interests of their children.

Stepparent adoptions can be one way to accomplish this. The practical and emotional benefits of stepparent adoptions are many. It is almost always worth going through to the somewhat bureaucratic process in order to finalize a stepparent adoption.

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For more than 30 years, The Offices of Keane Law, LLC, has guided Colorado families through family law-related legal issues. Adoptions are one of our favorite areas to work in. We feel honored to participate in a process whose goal is to create a more solid and stable family unit.

Assistance from an experienced attorney is helpful in stepparent adoptions. There are several phases of the stepparent adoption process, and a lawyer's aid can make the process run more smoothly and quickly.

Your attorney from Keane Law will explain all the required stages of the process to you and your family, handle all the necessary paperwork, and appear with you at the final hearing.

The stages of a stepparent adoption are:

• Petition and background check: The stepmother or stepfather files a formal petition to the court asking to adopt the child. The stepparent's spouse must formally consent to the adoption, and so must the child if over 12 years of age. The stepparent must submit to a criminal records and background check.
• Termination of parental rights: If the child's other biological parent consents to the adoption, he or she must formally surrender his or her parental rights. Otherwise, the family must show good cause for the stepparent adoption. The most common forms of good cause are abandonment and failure to pay child support for one year or more.
• Court hearing: The hearing will occur after the stepparent submits the petition, the background checks are completed, and evidence for termination of parental rights has been documented. When the other biological parent does not fight the adoption, stepparent adoption hearings often take on a celebratory tone.

For a free, confidential initial consultation, contact Keane Law today.