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Speak Up! - View Question #171 |
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Question: How do I terminate my fathers rights to me. I have not seen him in three years. I want my step dad to adopt me.
Answer: Although you have not seen your father in three years, is he paying child support or has he kept in touch with you in some way? This is important because if he has not paid support or called or sent letters, etc., there may be grounds to terminate parental rights on the basis of abandonment. To do this a petition for termination of parental rights would need to be filed with the juvenile court and your father would have an opportunity to challenge it. The easiest thing to do would be for your mother to ask your father to voluntarily give up his parental rights. Then you would be free to be adopted, if that's what your step-father and mother agree it is best for you.
Even if your step-father cannot legally adopt you, he is still acting as your father for all practical purposes and obviously cares about you. So whether you are legally adopted or not, you are fortunate to have two loving adults to take care of you.
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| 16 thru 20 of 23 comments |
On 04/23/03
William from FL said:
I have not seen my son since he was 2 he is now 12 yrs old. After I got my divorce my ex-wife resided in Virginia. I resently called child support to see if they can help me out but all they could tell me is that his SSN# has not been active for 3 yrs now. I ask how can that be? She state only 3 reason one could be that she took him out of the country or the boy is not alive and that she has had the step dad adopt him and chnging his name! Now i do not know where to go! I am still being deducted the child support but it is going into an account till something comes up. Can anyone help me
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On 03/05/03
Andrea from NM said:
BE VERY CAREFUL!!!!!!!!!!! Your son can not just decide to change his last name. It can cause many problems!! Such as: what if there was to be a fire at his school? Is he registered as John Smith? How are the police/firefighters to know he is accounted for if no John Smith can be found? What if they only find a John White? What if no one knows his former last name?
Is your wife(?) receiving child support for him? If he finds out that this kid is not using his last name, he can petition the court to suspend support, as he is not requiered to pay support for a "John White" and as long as that
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On 01/20/03
Myrna from FL said:
I am the mother of a 15 yr. old and she is a run away. she has ran away 4 times just because she doesn't get her way. When she gets caught skipping school or hang out with the wrong people she gets punished and she doesn't like it so she runs aways. I wanted to know why it is not a criminal offense?
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On 10/27/02
Ted from NC said:
We are going through the same situation. Unfortunately we sued my stepsons legal father first for 3 years back child support. And he still dosnt call. So we went for the T.P.R. and he dosnt call to talk to the boy, He calls to argue. Still hasn't seen him in many tears and dosnt show interest, only in agrivating my wife.
My son knows me as Dad and Im the only one he knows. Its to the point he uses my last name every where he goes. School, Church, Everywhere! Im glad we are not alone.
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On 10/17/02
STEVE from WA said:
I know exactly how you must feel but believe me, there are two sides to every story. Maybe your dad is looking for you but hasn't had any luck. Perhaps your mother & stepfather are intentionally keeping your whereabouts a secret from him. These examples may not be the case but in custodial disputes, I think you'll find that the dads always get the short end of the stick. Give him a chance to explain his side. Remember, there's nothing stopping you from finding him...is there?
STEVE
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