Legal Question in Family Law in Missouri
Family Law
My sister who recently passed away had a 12 yr. old son who has never seen his biological father. She was never married to her son's father however when her son was 4 she married. They have since divorced. When my sister died my her son went to live with our mother. The ex-husband has apparently contacted the biological father who signed his rights over to the ex. My mom is trying to get guardianship. My question is can the biological father sign his rights to the ex and will that make the ex more likely to get custody of my nephew?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Family Law
Not necessarily so. If your sister never let her ex-husband adopt the child, the ex-husband would have to now adopt the child as his. At the age of 12, your nephew can tell the Judge whether this is what he wants. Since there is not biological ties to the ex-husband, if the nephew says he does not want to be adopted by the ex-husband, there is a very good chance it will not happen. Also, in order for the biological father to sign away his rights, there should have been something in the past that determines his paternity legally. If not, genetic testing would need to be done for any "signing away" documents to be binding and legal. Your mother should proceed with a guardianship/conservatorship over your nephew. If the ex-husband wants custody he will have to go to that court to have a trial over it since he is not a blood relation. Good luck.
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