Plz someone help me?

Question

i want to adopt my neice,who is in a foster home her mother passed away,a few months back,but i have to become a foster mother first.we are not blood related,but i was good friends with the child mothe.i would likt to know is there anyway i can get cusudy of her she is a teenager..we live in different states.anyone can help me...i called cps they said it could take up to a year before i could custudy..anyone can help me gon threw something smiliar..anything would help

Answer 1

well it can take a while for a adoption to be finalized, was it your sister that passed away. Are you the next of kin, did she have a will? Where is the father? If he is alive but does not want them, he can sign off for you to have them. But you can't adopt them without his consent if he is alive, if he is not known, they will try and find him and place a publication set to run a number of days (ours was about 45 days) in a legal publication paper.

I would say the first step would be contacting the place the children are telling them you want them and then take steps to get gaurdianship of the children, once you are their legal gaurdian they can live with you  until everything else gets done. You will have to do a home study and get a adoption lawyer to finalize things.

Our adoption started in Oct 04 but he came to live with us in April of 05 and stayed with us the whole time, we did not finalize till Feb 06. Also since the child is a teen she will have some say on living with you or not.

Answer 2

See if you can get provisionally licensed and then take custody of this young lady while you're fulfilling the requirements to become fully licensed to provide her care.  The fact that you have a pre-existing relationship is a positive thing that they will consider.

Answer 3

you would need ot contact her states department of children services.  if there are no other blood relatives wanting custody of her and she agress to live with you then its a done deal.  a year sounds about right when you are considering interstate compact laws in addition to all the other court hearings.  all states have different laws.  best to check with the child and her court appointed attorney.  maybe her attorney can file a motion that could grant you temporary custody prior to all the final court stuff.  lastly,  I am not really sure that you NEED to get licensed if you are a relative...ask the attorney's.  i know that most states dont want the financial burden of the wards they serve and try to get them in APPROPRIATE "permenant" situations.  the sooner the (cheaper) better (for the state that is financially responsible for her).  GOOD LUCK

Answer 4

Would your niece want you to adopt her?  I ask because at her age she is able to say yes or no -and will be asked.  I would keep in contact with her. This is not only good for her but shows you have a definite interest.

You dont have to become a foster mother actually, but you do have to go through the classes and have the homestudy etc.  Everyone does-this prevents kids from being taken again!  Call around and see what is offered in your county or one close to you.  If you dont get the answer you want-keep callling.  There are always classes starting, some can be taken online, and some are for a full day or at night etc so people that work can make it work.

Being in a different state means more paperwork and it may take a little longer, but it is not impossible.  Best of luck and who knows-maybe you will get some great case workers that will see you are the best fit for this girl who-by the way-already knows you and has a history with you being friends with her mom-so it may happen quicker than you realize.

Luck, Sheri

Answer 5

Does she have any biological family alive? The reason that I ask is they could actually petition a court on your behalf for the purpose of adoption. This occurred in our adoption.

Our son was removed from his bio parents at birth but in his case, his bio grandparents took custody of him thru kinship care (a form of foster care). Because he had a life-threatening disorder, the state recommended to the bio-grandparents that they try to find adoptive parents and proceed with a private adoption since they knew that they would be unable to care for him long-term due to their ages. During the process, the state "changed their mind" and decided that they were going to place our son in foster care and try to do a foster/adopt. The bio-grandparents petitioned a family court judge to gain legal custody for the purpose of proceeding with an adoption process with us. The family court judge agreed and we signed the adoption papers the same day. We just had to wait until the interstate papers cleared so that we could bring him home across state lines.

I would recommend contacting an attorney in your home state for additional advice. They should be able to assist you.

Good luck.

Answer 6

Contact the social service agency in the town where she is living. They will likely welcome you. You will have to take some classes. It should take a few months, but they might let you have her sooner given the situation.

Answer 7

going threw the same thing