mommytotwo
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Mississippi and Louisiana
My husband and I are proud parents to a 9 and 5 year old. We have a niece that is 13 who we have always wanted to adopt. I am going to give a brief explanation of her life and the living situation. My brother and his girlfriend got pregnant when they were in there teens. Along came my wonderful niece. Her parents did not stay together so she lived with her mom and maternal grandparents until she was 3. At that point, her mother married and her step-father abused and molested her. Sadly, her own mother would not believe her and stood by her husbands word until it was proven and she lost custody. My brother then received custody and her mother had visitation. The step-father was now out of the picture. Unfortunately, my brother has his own issues (medical) so my mother (her fraternal grandmother) has raised her now since about the age of 5. My husband and I have always loved her as our own and she has spent most summers with us including any time she is out of school. We have always wanted to adopt her but were told thaat if my brother gave up his rights, her mother could get her back before we could adopt her. My brother and mother have always been on board, but not her mother. She is now remarried with her 3rd child. That is 3 children from 3 different men. 3 1/2 years ago, we moved to a neighboring state (about a 6 hour drive away) due to my husband's job. But any opportunity we get, we have her here with us. She is constantly telling us she wants to live with us. She crys everytime she leaves. She does love her fraternal grandparents (my parents) and they love her, however, they are getting older and it is really getting hard for them. Also, we are the closest thing to a family she has ever had. We have always been told that as soon as my brother agrees to giving up his custody to us, it would allow her mother to get her back. That is the last thing we want or that she needs. It is still such a bad situation as far as living with her mother would go. My niece does not like her new step-father at all. And my niece herself does not want to live with her mother. My question is now that she is 13, does she have any say about this? Is there anyway this could happen, that is my brother giving up his custody for us to have her without her mother getting her back? We are hoping someone else has experienced a situation like this that can tell us their outcome so we know if this is worth pursuing and getting a lawyer. Thanks so much!
My husband and I are proud parents to a 9 and 5 year old. We have a niece that is 13 who we have always wanted to adopt. I am going to give a brief explanation of her life and the living situation. My brother and his girlfriend got pregnant when they were in there teens. Along came my wonderful niece. Her parents did not stay together so she lived with her mom and maternal grandparents until she was 3. At that point, her mother married and her step-father abused and molested her. Sadly, her own mother would not believe her and stood by her husbands word until it was proven and she lost custody. My brother then received custody and her mother had visitation. The step-father was now out of the picture. Unfortunately, my brother has his own issues (medical) so my mother (her fraternal grandmother) has raised her now since about the age of 5. My husband and I have always loved her as our own and she has spent most summers with us including any time she is out of school. We have always wanted to adopt her but were told thaat if my brother gave up his rights, her mother could get her back before we could adopt her. My brother and mother have always been on board, but not her mother. She is now remarried with her 3rd child. That is 3 children from 3 different men. 3 1/2 years ago, we moved to a neighboring state (about a 6 hour drive away) due to my husband's job. But any opportunity we get, we have her here with us. She is constantly telling us she wants to live with us. She crys everytime she leaves. She does love her fraternal grandparents (my parents) and they love her, however, they are getting older and it is really getting hard for them. Also, we are the closest thing to a family she has ever had. We have always been told that as soon as my brother agrees to giving up his custody to us, it would allow her mother to get her back. That is the last thing we want or that she needs. It is still such a bad situation as far as living with her mother would go. My niece does not like her new step-father at all. And my niece herself does not want to live with her mother. My question is now that she is 13, does she have any say about this? Is there anyway this could happen, that is my brother giving up his custody for us to have her without her mother getting her back? We are hoping someone else has experienced a situation like this that can tell us their outcome so we know if this is worth pursuing and getting a lawyer. Thanks so much!