# my husband and I want to him to adopt my daughter.....



## auddy13

my husband and I have talked about him adopting my 1 year old daughter.She knows him as "daddy" and he has supported both us since she 4 months old. I do not know where her biological father is, who he is, and he is not on the birth certificate.I was in a relationship with someone when she was born and put BOTH mine and his last name on her certificate due to pressure. but he is not on the certificate and he wasnt there and I never spoke to him after she was born. Can I file for abandonment then my husband could adopt?


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## CanadianMaple

We're facing the same kind of thing. My advice would be to talk to a lawyer and see if the can find him and offer from him to sign away his rights. They can put an ad in the newspaper your court is in to notify him of a hearing. If he doesn't show, the adoption can go through.


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## aliss

auddy13 said:


> my husband and I have talked about him adopting my 1 year old daughter.She knows him as "daddy" and he has supported both us since she 4 months old. I do not know where her biological father is, who he is, and he is not on the birth certificate.I was in a relationship with someone when she was born and put BOTH mine and his last name on her certificate due to pressure. but he is not on the certificate and he wasnt there and I never spoke to him after she was born. Can I file for abandonment then my husband could adopt?

You will need to contact the legal father and ask permission for him to terminate his rights in order for a step-parent adoption. There are steps to proving abandonment - you may have to post a court notice or do other steps. A step-parent adoption should never be attempted without a lawyer.

You also need a lawyer because you have committed fraud in terms of naming the father on the birth certificate - this is a criminal offense in most places (you didn't indicate your location). While you may have been in a domestic violence situation or whatever your reasons were, it is very likely this did not meet the legal definition of coercion. You absolutely CANNOT do this without a lawyer.

Step-parent adoption also requires a "waiting" period after the birth - that law varies but is generally 1 year or more after the marriage is legalized. Again, a lawyer will advise.


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