Can you help me with questions about adoption in Ohio?

Question

I would like to legally adopt my step son. He is has been in my life for 3 1/2 years. His mother and I were legally married in June of 2007. The biological father has been out of the picture for nearly seven years. My wife, son and I now live in Ohio and I have a few questions about adoption.

1. Do we need to go to court to adopt?

2. Does the birth father have to be present for adoption? If so, what happens if we have no idea where he lives? Is it possible to prove that he is no longer part of my son's life?

3. Do my wife and I have to be married for at least a year for adoption?

I researched some of these questions on the internet, but thought it would be more efficient to utilize Yahoo! Answers. Thank you in advance for any help.

Answer 1

Are you aware that you do need to contact the biological father and get his permission? Regardless of what he has or has not done you will need his consent. I suggest your start there.......probably not what yo want to hear but there is a specific process you must go through. You will need to hire a lawyer (family law attorney who can handle step-parent adoption) and a private investogator if you do not  know the location of the father. The court takes the termination of parental rights very seriously.

Answer 2

My sister (in Ohio) is looking into this. We asked our attorney and he said that they needed a homestudy (very basic) with a background check and financialy review. and interviews. I think the quoted her like $550 for the study, it's like 2 hours.

I don't know if you CAN prove he hasn;t been there . If you can get his consent, I'd me a lot easier. Our magistrate required both parents to be present in court to relinquish. I'm not she with step parent adoption.

Answer 3

go to the yellow pages and look through the pages devoted to Attorneys.  They can give you real advice that you can trust that is specific to your state laws.

don't trust a bunch of immature numbskulls on this site for something as important as adoption.

Answer 4

In Ohio, adoptions are handled by the probate court in your county. I do not know the specific answers to your questions about step-parent adoption, but I suggest that you'll get the most reliable and efficient answers by calling your probate court and asking them. (The internet can be a great source of information, but it's not always reliable...especially Y!A)

Answer 5

THE BIO FATHER EVEN KNOW HE HAS NOT BE IN THE PICTURE FOR SOME TIME STILL HAS PERENTAL RIGHTS . YOU CAN PETITION THE COURT AND HAVE THE BIO FATHER APPEAR IN FAMILY COURT. IF HE DECLINES YOUR REQUEST TO LET YOU ADOPT HIM THAT IS HIS RIGHT AS A PARENT TO HIS BIO CHILD. IF HE ACCEPT YOUR REQUEST HE WOULD HAVE TO SIGN ALL RIGHTS AWAY TO HIS BIO CHILD. ITS A GREY AREA EVEN THOUGH HE HAS NOT BEEN AROUND... HE STILL MAINTAINS RIGHTS. SO THE BEST THING TO IS HIRE A FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY... IF MONEY IS A FACTOR YOU CAN CALL YOUR LACAL COURTHOUSE AND ASK TO SPEAK WITH A FAMILY COURT AVOCATE .... GOOD LUCK

Answer 6

Here are the laws specific to adopting in Ohio.

http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/3107

For any adoption, you will need to go through the court, as an adoption cannot be legal unless the court finalizes it.