Legal Question in Family Law in South Carolina

relinquish parental rights

I am the father of a 17 year old daughter about to turn 18. I have paid

child

support throughout this entire period of time. In all these years I have had

a difficult time in getting her to spend time with me. Just this year alone

I

have only seen her several times (maybe three or four). We only live a few

miles apart, approximately 4 or 5 miles. I am about to go back to court

because she wants an increase in child support which I cannot afford at this

time. I also believe that in the near future she will be taking me back to

court for college tuition which I also cannot afford. She is a very bright

student therefore I think she will get scholarships to adequately help. My

question is this, she has practically disowned me as her father so I want to

know if I can legally give up all parental rights to her and not be

responsible for her in the future? Any advise you can offer is appreciated.


Asked on 10/08/00, 2:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Johnston Law Offices of Robert J. Johnston

Re: relinquish parental rights

You need to look at the original court order to see what exactly your child support obligations are and for how long. Its possible that all support obligations end when she turns 18. If you don't have or can't find the order, then you can either call your old lawyer, her lawyer, or call the court that issued the order and ask them if you can get a copy of it.

As far as terminating your parental rights, that is possible, but in your situation it appears that you could only do it if your ex-wife would agree to it. Because I do not have all of the information that I need to adequately answer this question, please contact a lawyer before making any decisions. Good luck.

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Answered on 11/04/00, 8:03 am


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