Today’s families often include blended family members, such as stepparents and stepchildren. According to statistics, around 50% of U.S. marriages are re-marriages, resulting in 1,300 new stepfamilies established each day. In most remarriages, a child remains the legal child of both biological parents, with the divorced parents sharing custody; however, in some circumstances, a child’s stepparent seeks adoption to formalize their parental relationship with their spouse’s child. Reach out to our adoption attorneys in Denver to discuss your case today in a free consultation.
When Can a Colorado Stepparent Adopt?
There are several requirements before a stepparent can file a petition to adopt a steppchild. First, the stepparent must be over the age of 21 for a court to consider the adoption. Then, importantly, the child’s legal relationship with their other biological parent must be severed through one of the following circumstances:
- Due to the other biological parent’s death
- Through a written verification of the other parent’s willingness to allow the adoption, including the termination of their parental rights and the court’s approval of their relinquishment of parental rights
- After a court has ended the parent-child relationship with the other parent
Other than a paren’t voluntary request to end their parental rights in favor of allowing a stepparent to adopt their child, the Colorado court will only end a parent’s parental rights for limited reasons, such as child abandonment, child neglect, child abuse, sexual abuse, untreated substance abuse, or felony conviction and incarceration for a violent crime.
A child over the age of 12 in Colorado must also consent to their adoption by the stepparent.
Finally, the child’s custodial parent must approve their spouse’s adoption of their child.
What Is the Process of Stepparent Adoption In Colorado?
After a steppchild’s biological parent has died, given consent, or had their parental rights terminated, the stepparent may begin the adoption process to formalize their relationship as a parent and legal guardian of their stepchild. The process of stepparent adoption in Colorado proceeds as follows:
- First, the stepparent seeking to adopt must undergo a fingerprint-based criminal background check in both state and federal databases and a TRAILS background check, which monitors any parent’s history of child abuse or neglect or domestic abuse
- Typically, most stepparents seeking to adopt a stepchild hire a Denver, Colorado family lawyer to navigate the complex filing requirements, provide experienced legal counsel, and meticulously file all necessary paperwork within the court’s guidelines and time limits
Hiring an attorney for this legal process is highly beneficial. Depending on the circumstances, there are as many as ten legal documents to file, including the petition, the custodial parent’s consent form, the child’s consent form if they are over age 12, the petition to terminate the non-custodial biological parent’s parental rights, and more. This can become a very challenging process without experienced legal representation.
Attend an Adoption Hearing
During the adoption hearing, the petitioner and respondent (typically, the child’s biological parent) present the stepparent’s reasons for seeking the adoption and the non-custodial biological parent’s reasons for agreeing or protesting the adoption. The hearing may involve presenting witness testimony and other evidence.
If the judge approves the adoption, they issue a final decree of adoption and certify two or more copies of the decree. One is sent to the Department of Public Health, Office of the State Registrar of Vital Statistics to issue a new birth certificate. Then the stepparent adoption in Colorado becomes official, granting the stepparent and child all of the benefits of a legal and emotional parent-child relationship.