Stepparent Adoption: Making it official

Stepparent Adoption is a legal way to confirm blended family ties.

If marriage is the bonding of two people who love each other, modern, blended families bring children into that embrace of love. Being a stepparent and caring for the biological child of your new partner can be rewarding and fulfilling. To make the parental role official, a parent can formally adopt their stepchild. Although this process of raising a new partner’s child is common and possible without the formal proceedings, adoption gives a stepparent the full legal rights of a birth parent and gives the child the full rights of an heir.

The process begins with obtaining clearances in order to make the stepparent eligible to adopt. This includes Pennsylvania criminal history clearances, child abuse clearances and FBI fingerprinting. Once receiving these clearances, a stepparent and their spouse (the petitioning natural parent) can file an adoption petition.

The key part in the process is the termination of the (nonpetitioning) biological parent’s rights. This can be a major hurdle towards stepparent adoption. This is not required if the biological parent is deceased. However, if the biological parent is alive, they may or may not be willing to consent.

If the biological parent is willing, then a petition for voluntary termination can be filed. This is the simpler version of the process because both natural parents are consenting to the adoption procedure. This could be done for many reasons such as acknowledgment of their inability to care for the child and recognition that it is in the child’s best interest to be adopted.

An involuntary termination is needed if the non-petitioning biological parent refuses to sign a consent for a variety of reasons. The non-petitioning biological parent must be notified of all proceedings giving them opportunity to claim parental rights and stop the termination. However, if the birth parent fails to contest the termination of their rights and it is shown that they have been notified of the process, they will lose their rights involuntarily.

Once the rights have been terminated the stepparent’s adoption petition can proceed. These two components must be done in conjunction because the court will not terminate a parent without the process of adoption.

This process is a generally happy one that allows new families the protection of legal recognition, but it can also be fraught with many complications. It is important to have a knowledgeable attorney to guide you through the adoption process.

Please call my office at 215-345-5259 for a free first consult about stepparent adoption. I look forward to helping you with this important family choice.

-Maggie Sjostedt for Elissa C. Goldberg, Esquire