Grounds for Adoption: Consent & Termination

Consent or Termination

The provisions of the laws provided by the state of Florida regarding step parent adoption are very clear when it comes to how the entire adoption process works. This is so in that it makes it mandatory for the step parent, who intends to become their step child’s natural parent, to obtain consent from the other parent, or to terminate that parent’s parental rights before being able to adopt the said stepchild. This is very important especially because the Florida public policy regards highly of the relationship between a parent and a child. It is for this reason that under the laws of Florida, it is mandatory for the step parent intending to undertake the adoption process to contact the other parent for purposes of obtaining their consent. There are however some situations in which the other parent’s consent may not be necessary. Such cases are inclusive of situations where the other parent may have willfully terminated their own parental rights over the child in previous proceedings.

The next step that is necessary upon successfully filing a petition is that the petitioners are required to give the other spouse and/or any other interested party notice. This is however not necessary in cases where the other parent had waived their parental rights in order to allow for the step-parent to adopt their child. If the other parent disputes to the step parent adoption, the court will have to hear from both parties in order to, whether it will be in the child’s best interest to allow the child to be adopted by the step parent.