Stepparents Adoption in Los Angeles, California

In many stepfamilies, the non-custodial parent is no longer involved in the child’s life and adoption can be a beautiful way for a stepparent to commit to the child and provide them with the stability and security of knowing they will be loved and cared for for a lifetime. 

In Los Angeles, stepparent adoption is a very straight-forward legal process by which the adoptive stepparent becomes legally responsible for the stepchild they adopt. The stepparent gains all parental rights and responsibilities regarding the stepchild, responsibilities that the stepparent now shares with their spouse.

Legal Process :

Adoption Request

Stepparent adoption, as with all forms of adoption, comes under the field of Family Law. In Los Angeles County, however, all stepparent adoptions are filed in the Edmund D. Edelman Children’s Court, which mainly handles foster care/dependency cases.  The court has one courtroom dedicated to private adoptions, in which your matter will most likely be heard.  To file a stepparent adoption request: 

1. The stepparent must be married to, or be the domestic partner of, one of the child’s biological parents. California does not require a marriage to be of a certain duration before proceedings to adopt a stepchild can be commenced. 
2. The adopting stepparent must be a resident of Los Angeles County. Similar to the duration of the marriage requirement, no minimum length of residency is required to petition a Los Angeles court for a stepchild adoption.
3. The stepchild being adopted must be under the age of 18 when the stepparent adoption is finalized. Otherwise, an adult adoption must occur, which has slightly different laws and procedures. Adoption Law Group also specializes in adult adoption of stepchildren.

Once these prerequisites are met, the Adoption Request is completed and filed. This form, along with any others that are required, must be completed by the adopting parent—in this case, the stepparent—and must include details about the adopting parent and the child being adopted. A special section of the form is filled in for stepparent adoptions. Information regarding the nature of the stepparent's relationship with the child as well as information about the child’s other parents and guardians is also included. 

The filing fee for an Adoption Request is $20.00. After the Adoption Request and accompanying forms are filed, the petition is added to the court's records. Filing the Petition commences formal proceedings and triggers the next step in the adoption process. 

Investigation

This stage involves an investigation by a social services agency responsible for investigating and reporting back to the court. When a stepparent or domestic partner petitions the court to adopt their stepchild, they can request the court to assign the County of Los Angeles, Department of Child and Family Services, Adoption Unit to their investigation. The Adoption Unit is responsible for completing an assessment of the family. Families may also choose to hire a licensed private adoption agency, a licensed clinical social worker or a licensed marriage and family therapist to do the investigation if they choose. By law, the investigation cannot cost over $700. Los Angeles County offers a sliding fee scale, ranging from $50--$700, while a private agency typically does not. Adoption Law Group will help you assess whether the county or a private agency is best in your situation. 

The investigation for stepparent adoptions does not involve a home study, which is a physical investigation of the premises where the child is/will be residing. Section 9001 of the Family Code details this, as well as other matters relating to stepparent adoption. The investigation assesses the stability of the stepparent's marriage as well as the stepparent's relationship with their stepchild. Interviews are conducted with all parties, including the child. If the child is over 12 years old, they must understand and consent to the adoption. If your child does not know that their stepparent is not their biological parent, the adoption process is an excellent time to tell them. Adoption Law Group can talk to you about positive ways to approach that conversation with your child. The investigation is primarily to determine whether the adoption is in the child’s best interest. Once the investigation has been completed, it is submitted to the court. 

Consent of the Non-custodial Biological Parent

An integral part of the stepparent adoption process is either obtaining the consent of the noncustodial biological parent or having a court terminate their parental rights involuntarily. This is a necessary step as the adoption ends their legal parental rights. Only in rare instances, referred to as an “additional parent adoption,” may a non-custodial parent keep his or her parental rights. All parties must consent to such an arrangement. 

Ideally, noncustodial biological parents will consent to the adoption. By doing so, they agree to have their parental rights terminated. This results in them giving up their rights as legal parents, which includes their rights to things such as court-ordered visitation. It also, however, relieves them of legal obligations associated with legal parenthood such as the payment of child support. Adoption Law Group Attorneys will work closely with you to determine the best way to approach the absent parent about getting their consent. Our attorneys our happy to reach out directly and make all arrangements regarding the consent. 

If the noncustodial biological parent cannot be located or is unwilling to consent to the adoption, the court may terminate their rights without their consent. If they are unwilling to consent to the adoption, it does not necessarily mean they wish to fight the adoption. There may be issues with locating the biological or noncustodial parent due to them being absent for many years. Reasonable steps must be taken to locate them, such as sending a notice to their last known address, searching public data bases, and obtaining county records where they may now be residing. If the biological or noncustodial parent cannot be found after reasonable steps to locate them have been undertaken, or if they are unwilling to consent, adopting parents can apply to the court to either have notice dispensed with or notice by publication, depending on the absent parent’s prior involvement with the child. 

To terminate a biological or noncustodial parent's parental rights, adopting stepparents must file a petition with the court and obtain a hearing date. This is a separate hearing from the adoption hearing. Pleadings must request termination of parental rights and set out the reasoning on which this request is based. The court considers the stepparent's ability to provide a suitable home for the child as well as look at the parental history of the noncustodial or biological parent. Termination is usually awarded in where the noncustodial biological parent has not been in contact with or provided any support to the child for over a year and they cannot overcome the presumption that their intent was to abandon the child. Once consent or a termination order have been obtained and the investigation is complete, with the report received by the court, a date for the adoption hearing can be set. 

Court Hearing

At the hearing, the Judge assesses the forms and all circumstances of the case. The adopting stepparent, biological parent, and the child being adopted must go to the hearing. At the hearing, the adopting stepparent formally agrees to adopt their stepchild. If everything is in order, the Judge grants the Adoption Order and the adoption is finalized. Family and friends are invited to the hearing, and most Judges treat this final hearing as both a formal hearing and a celebration of adoption. The usual court rule of no photography is waived and photos with the Judge may be taken. 

Following the Granting of an Order of Adoption