Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
termination of parental rights
my daughter was born in CA 12/04. haven't seen bio
father since she's two weeks old. he did not sign birth cert. neither of us signed decl. of prtnty-i had to put him on child supp questnre because i wasn't married-he
moved to NV, never paid child support,never made
contact,multi-convicted felon in CA & NV(forgery,
aiding/abeting, narc sales/transp,manslaughter)
DOCUMENTED meth & crack addict, never been
employed, never responded to child supp summons or
hearings, never supported other bio offspring. he's now rcvng gen asstnce CA (welfare), but was declared
''adjudicated father'' by default in '06 by dept of chld supp. my boyfriend has been with me since i was 3
months preg with her. he has raised her & presented
himself as her father, & has financially supported her
since her birth. she only knows him to be her daddy. i know i have several grounds to terminate bio's rights, especially best interest of child, but i don't know the exact procedure-which forms? where to file? how to
notify/serve bio of intention? can i terminate bio's rights now, or does the term. have to be done in conjunction with a pending adoption? can boyfriend adopt w/o marriage?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: termination of parental rights
Read the Nolo Press book, Adopt Your Stepchild (nolo.com)