Getting Father to Give Up Parental Rights

[oohlalalindz]

My question involves a child custody case from the State of: LA

my child is 7yrs old and her father hasnt seen her in 6 yrs. his name has never been on the birth certif. and so she has my last name. he only pays the ordered amount of child support and does not provide medical (that was in the papers). again she has not seen him in 6 yrs and he has not asked either

i have recently gotten married and we now want the spouse to adopt her. first the bio father has to give up his rights and then my spouse can adopt her.
my questons are, (1) do i need a lawyer to mail him a letter asking the father this or can i ask him? (2) if he is willing what happens next (3) if he is not willing, what rights might he still have after 6 yrs of no contact & what could he fight for in court if he wanted to?

a lot of questions but we were never married so the laws are confusing. i have sole custody and he, like i said is not on the birth certif. there was a DNA test that proves he is in fact the father.

[Xena]

My question involves a child custody case from the State of: LA

my child is 7yrs old and her father hasnt seen her in 6 yrs. his name has never been on the birth certif. and so she has my last name. he only pays the ordered amount of child support and does not provide medical (that was in the papers). again she has not seen him in 6 yrs and he has not asked either

i have recently gotten married and we now want the spouse to adopt her. first the bio father has to give up his rights and then my spouse can adopt her.
my questons are, (1) do i need a lawyer to mail him a letter asking the father this or can i ask him? (2) if he is willing what happens next (3) if he is not willing, what rights might he still have after 6 yrs of no contact & what could he fight for in court if he wanted to?

a lot of questions but we were never married so the laws are confusing. i have sole custody and he, like i said is not on the birth certif. there was a DNA test that proves he is in fact the father.

The best thing to do will be for you to get a consult with a local adoption attorney who will be able to answer all of your questions. Consulttations are typically inexpensive and well worth the money and time.

[Mr. Knowitall]

Generally speaking, with consent you simply provide a document to the court establishing consent. (There's often a standard form that should or must be used). Without consent, if the father in fact opposes you in court, you would have to convince the court that it has legal grounds to terminate the father's parental rights against his will, and that it's in the child's best interest to do so.

See CHC 1193 and CHC 1138 for a sense of what's involved.