Sign away parental rights

[BoogaBearC]

My husband has a daughter born out of wedlock, and the mother started child support a few years back. He has since payed some, but not all of the child support, seeing as he already has his oldest daughter to support as well. He has seen this child once in her life, and doesn't even know her telephone number anymore. When we were trying to get her to come visit (She is in Oregon, and we are in Texas, and the child support is through California), she wouldn't let us have her, because she couldn't bare to be away from her. Well, since then, my husband and I have heard nothing from her, and are curious if he has any right to sign away his parental rights to this child, and stop child support without the agreement of the mother. Should he have to pay for a child he has no rights to?

 

[ndea25]

If your husband wants a relationship with his daughter, why doesn't he go to court and have custody/visitation and child support set up himself? He doesn't have to wait for the mother to take him to court. He also has rights even if she says he doesn't. That's why you go to court. If that child support he was paying was court ordered, he still has to pay it until the court says different. From what I've learned, the gov't doesn't like to orphan a child.

 

[LadyBlu]

My husband has a daughter born out of wedlock, and the mother started child support a few years back. He has since payed some, but not all of the child support, seeing as he already has his oldest daughter to support as well. He has seen this child once in her life, and doesn't even know her telephone number anymore. When we were trying to get her to come visit (She is in Oregon, and we are in Texas, and the child support is through California), she wouldn't let us have her, because she couldn't bare to be away from her. Well, since then, my husband and I have heard nothing from her, and are curious if he has any right to sign away his parental rights to this child, and stop child support without the agreement of the mother. Should he have to pay for a child he has no rights to?

He has rights, but only the rights that the court order has given him. Does it give him visitation? Did either the mother or the father contact the court when you moved out of CA?

The problem with this whole situation, and being a mother that has gone through this personally, sending the child to you and hubby in TX for visitation when there has been no parent child relationship is asking alot. You stated he has only seen the child once, but you neer said how old the child is either, and that he has been paying for a few years but still owes.. that tells me he is behind in support. So if you were to push the issue through the courts you may end up with supervised visits until the parent child relationship is established, meanign you would have to travel or pay for mom and daughter to, back and forth from TX to OR.

Then again because of the support being behind and non contact she could fight for you to have the visitation stripped.

 

[BoogaBearC]

Reply to answers for Sign Away Parental Rights

My husband was given nothing but court orders telling him to pay an ammount that the mother doesn't even get for her first two children together. There was nothing on there about him having any visitation rights. He has no rights as far as the mother goes, and when we have called or written the California courts, they have never replied, and left us wondering what to do next. We are not rich people. We are barely able to support his oldest daughter, which lives with us. He has no relationship with this other child, and we feel hopeless about getting anywhere with this whole situation. Does he have the right to sign away his rights to this child, and discontinue child support? I've heard of it being done before, but am not sure if it has to be a mutual agreement between both parents. What I don't understand, is how a mother has the right to give a baby up for adoption without consulting the father, but the father has no rights to sign his rights away without consulting the mother first. That doesn't seem fair.

 

[LadyBlu]

Re: Reply to answers for Sign Away Parental Rights

My husband was given nothing but court orders telling him to pay an ammount that the mother doesn't even get for her first two children together. There was nothing on there about him having any visitation rights. He has no rights as far as the mother goes, and when we have called or written the California courts, they have never replied, and left us wondering what to do next. We are not rich people. We are barely able to support his oldest daughter, which lives with us. He has no relationship with this other child, and we feel hopeless about getting anywhere with this whole situation. Does he have the right to sign away his rights to this child, and discontinue child support? I've heard of it being done before, but am not sure if it has to be a mutual agreement between both parents. What I don't understand, is how a mother has the right to give a baby up for adoption without consulting the father, but the father has no rights to sign his rights away without consulting the mother first. That doesn't seem fair.

The mother could petition the court only if she had someone lined up to adopt the child and there was abandonment was shown. Your husband needs to get visitation initiated, because until/unless he does the mother does not have to send the child to him for visits. You will need to get an attorney or petition the court yourself. You could petition the CA courts for this, but I would consult with an attorney in TX, to see which state needed to be petitioned for your rights.

 

[BoogaBearC]

Reply to answers for parental rights

Thank you for your suggestions. They are much appreciated.