Legal Question in Family Law in Minnesota
Legal Guardian of minor child
I have a 7 year old daughter. Her biological father has not had any contact with her since she was 3 months of age. The father and I were never married. At one time I tried to obtain child support and the court did declare him the father. He avoided all attempts to establish child support. He has a history of drug abuse and I believe no contact with him is a good thing for my daughter.
I have been in a relationship for over 3 years now with a wonderful man. My daughter calls and thinks of him as her father. We have made the decision not to be married as my daughter has special needs and our joint income in this state, would void her of most all of the services she now receives through developmental disabilities.
My question is: how can I establish my ''life partner'' as a guardian, should something happen that I cannot make decisions on her behalf. And, is there a way to void the biological father's rights? Can he voluntarily give up his rights? How is that accomplished? If I were to marry, does that establish any guardianship of my daughter? Thank you so much!
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Legal Guardian of minor child
Marriage wouldn't automatically establish guardianship rights over a step-child. A step-parent can adopt a stepchild, though, and the first step in that process would be to terminate the biological father's parental rights--either voluntarily in conjunction with obtaining his consent to the adoption, or involuntarily by means of filing a petition for termination for cause.
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