Legal Question in Family Law in Utah

Just a little background...my daughter's biological father is serving a prison sentence right now, he owes over $4,000.00 in child support & has never paid a cent, we have a permanent restraining order against him & have even moved out of the state so that our location is unknown to him (because having a piece of paper that says he can't come around doesn't mean that he won't).

I recently got married & my husband would like to adopt my daughter. I was told by several people that I shouldn't need permission from the biological father to do this since he not only has no contact with his daughter but has never taken responsibility for her other than to put his name on her birth certificate & that is considered "abandonment". My question is what forms forms do I need to accomplish this? Where do I get them? Do I need to go to court for this? What exactly is the process to have my husband adopt my daughter? What do I need to do to get started?


Asked on 8/05/10, 11:09 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Alvin Lundgren Alvin R. Lundgren, L.C.

First a petition to declare the child abandoned and a petition to adopt by your husband is filed in court. The judge will find the abandonment, and then your husband can adopt.

A new birth certificate is issued.

I am not aware of any forms for this. You should have the assistance of an attorney to make sure the statutory requirements are met.

Please call for a free consultation.

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Answered on 8/10/10, 3:43 pm
Cory Wall Cory R. Wall, Attorney at Law, P.C.

You will need to file a step parent adoption and as part of the process, you will need to petition the court to terminate the biological father's parental rights. There are no forms for this sort of thing. Unless you know exactly what you're doing, you should hire an attorney to represent you in tis type of proceeding.

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Answered on 8/10/10, 6:28 pm


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