Stepchild Adoption Process
| Taking legal responsibility as well as financial responsibility towards your spouse's child is called step parenting, and is a common adoption procedure in the United States. Before you get started with the formalities, you must talk it out it with your spouse, your stepchild, and the biological parent. |
The legal procedure that you have to follow in order to adopt your stepchild is governed by the State law, so make sure you have researched the laws properly. Next, you must have the biological parents’ consent in writing, which means both your spouse and the other biological parent must state in writing that they are agreeable to you adopting their child. Third, find out the courts in your state that handle stepchild adoption cases, since in some states, it is a matter handled by the juvenile court, while other states allow the family court or the surrogate court decide such cases. Once you have identified the court that you would need to approach, get hold of all the relevant legal forms, fill the up and submit to the court. Some documents required to be submitted along with these forms are your marriage license, the birth certificate of the child and written consent of the biological parents.
Next, the court will assign a date for the hearing, when you must be present in court in front of the magistrate. He or she will have a few questions for you, and then a date for adoption will be set. On that particular day, the parent will be issued an adoption certificate, and a second hearing will also be held. However, once the parent receives the adoption certificate, he or she can apply for a revised birth certificate, which will have the parent's name as the adopted child's legal father or mother.
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