step parent adoption

What is the name of your state? Georgia
I have a 3 yr old. Her father has not ever paid support and has not contacted her in a year. Husband wants to adopt. She has not seen bio dad in 2 1/2 years. what steps should we take?

The first step is to have a good family attorney file a petition to adopt. This will start the ball rolling on all the procedures that follow.

If the father is not on the birth certificate, a paternity hearing will be ordered, and eventually a DNA test.

If he is the legally named father, he may be given a chance to consent to the adoption. If he consents, it should be a fairly easy process and not too expensive. If he fights the adoption, you may be in for a long struggle.

There are a lot of variables - how long you've been married, your new husband's criminal past (if any), when was paternity established, was support ever ordered, etc.

Search this forum for stepparent adoption. It's a fairly popular subject. You'll find almost everything you need to know.

Good luck.

I was married to daughter's bio dad. Husband and I have been married for 9 months but he has been helping support her for amost 2 years. Child support was ordered in divorce/ custody agreement. I have sole custody. He is on her birth certificate. We were under the assumption that his rights had to be terminated for husband to adopt.

You are correct - the rights must be terminated. When he gets a copy of the petition, he will be given a chance to consent. If he consents, one of the following steps will be terminating the rights. If he does not consent, then you ask the courts to terminate his rights due to abandonment, failure to maintain contact, and the child's best interest.

In Georgia, failure to comply with court ordered support is a justifiable reason to terminate.

Termination of parental rights, and adoption, are two separate cases often involving different judges.

I'd bet the rent money biodad won't fight you. How can he explain to the judge that he loves this child and should be allowed to keep his rights after all this time?

thank you