okay i have a major question does anyone know the process of having rights terminated or signed over to another individual in NC, my childs father and I have decided this would be best for him and i need to know where to begin can anyone please help

If you have a step-parent or full set of parents ready to adopt the child, you can pay a lawyer to get this done. It is not a do-it-yourself project. If there is not a step-parent or full set of parents ready to adopt the child the chances of the courts allowing it is extremely rare.

If you have a step-parent or full set of parents ready to adopt the child, you can pay a lawyer to get this done. It is not a do-it-yourself project. If there is not a step-parent or full set of parents ready to adopt the child the chances of the courts allowing it is extremely rare.

i am getting married next week and my fiance has been the father to my son since he was 1 1/2 he is now 5 and he is totaly ready to take over custody so what do i do? call a lawyer?

Yes, call a lawyer and tell them you will have an uncontested step-parent adoption that you'd like to start the process on. They may make you wait until you've been married for a year, but you will need the time to get the proper paperwork in anyway.

Who Must Consent to an Adoption
Citation: Gen. Stat. §§ 48-3-601; 48-3-602

Consent to an adoption in a direct placement must be executed by:

The mother of the minor
Any man who may or may not be the biological father of the minor but who:

Is or was married to the mother
Attempted to marry the mother of the minor before the minor's birth
Has legitimated the minor under the law of any State
Has acknowledged his paternity of the minor
Has received the minor into his home and openly held out the minor as his biological child
Is the adoptive father of the minor

A guardian of the minor
The guardian ad litem of an incompetent parent


When Parental Consent is not Needed
Citation: Gen. Stat. § 48-3-603

Consent to an adoption of a minor is not required of:

An individual whose parental rights and duties have been terminated
A man, other than an adoptive father, if the man has been judicially determined not to be the father of the minor to be adopted, or another man has been judicially determined to be the father of the minor
An individual who has relinquished parental rights or guardianship powers, including the right to consent to adoption
A man who is not married to the minor's birth mother and who, after the conception of the minor, has executed a notarized statement denying paternity or disclaiming any interest in the minor
A deceased parent or the personal representative of a deceased parent's estate
An individual listed in § 48-3-601 who has not executed a consent or a relinquishment and who fails to respond to a notice of the adoption proceeding within 30 days after the service of the notice
An individual who does not respond to notice in a timely manner or whose consent is not required as determined by the court
An individual whose actions resulted in a conviction under § 14-27.2 or § 14-27.3 and the conception of the minor to be adopted


The court may issue an order dispensing with the consent of a guardian or an agency that placed the minor upon a finding that the consent is being withheld contrary to the best interest of the minor.

When Consent Can Be Executed
Citation: Gen. Stat. § 48-3-604


A man whose consent is required under § 48-3-601 may execute a consent to adoption either before or after the child is born.

The mother of a minor child may execute a consent to adoption at any time after the child is born but not sooner.

A guardian of a minor to be adopted may execute a consent to adoption at any time.

An agency licensed by the Department or a county department of social services in this State that places a minor for adoption shall execute its consent no later than 30 days after being served with notice of the proceeding for adoption.

A minor to be adopted who is age 12 or older may execute a consent at any time.




How Consent Must Be Executed
Citation: Gen. Stat. §§ 48-3-605; 48-3-606


Consent executed by a parent or guardian must be signed and acknowledged under oath before an individual authorized to administer oaths or take acknowledgments. A parent who has not reached the age of 18 years shall have legal capacity to give consent to adoption and to release that parent's rights to a child and shall be as fully bound as if the parent had attained age 18.

A consent by an agency must be executed by the executive head or another authorized employee and must be signed and acknowledged under oath in the presence of an individual authorized to administer oaths or take acknowledgments.


A consent to the adoption of an Indian child must meet the requirements of the Indian Child Welfare Act
(25 U.S.C. § 1901, et seq).

A consent must state:


That the individual executing the document is voluntarily consenting to the transfer of legal and physical custody to, and the adoption of the minor to be adopted by, the identified prospective adoptive parent
That the individual executing the document understands that after the consent is signed and acknowledged, it is final and irrevocable and may not be withdrawn or set aside except under a circumstance set forth in § 48-3-609
That the consent is not affected by any separate agreement between the individual executing the consent and the adoptive parent
That the individual executing the consent has not received or been promised any money or anything of value for the consent except for lawful payments that are itemized on a schedule attached to the consent
That the person executing the consent has:
Received or been offered an unsigned copy of the consent
Been advised that counseling services may be available through county departments of social services or licensed child-placing agencies
Been advised of the right to employ independent legal counsel



Revocation of Consent
Citation: Gen. Stat. §§ 48-3-607; 48-3- 608; 48-3-609

A consent is final and irrevocable except under a circumstance set forth below.

A consent to the adoption of any infant who is in utero or any minor may be revoked within 7 days following the day on which it is executed. The individual who gave the consent may revoke by giving written notice to the person specified in the consent.

In a direct placement, if a preplacement assessment is required, and if placement occurs before the preplacement assessment is given to the parent or guardian who is placing the minor, then that individual's time to revoke any consent previously given shall be either 5 business days after the date the individual receives the preplacement assessment or the remainder of the 7 days, whichever is longer.

If a person revokes a consent, the prospective adoptive parent shall, immediately upon request, return the minor to that person.

If a person revokes consent, the adoption cannot proceed until another consent is obtained or the person's parental rights are terminated. A second consent to adoption by the same adoptive parents is irrevocable.


A consent shall be void if:


Before the entry of the adoption decree, the individual who executed the consent establishes by clear and convincing evidence that it was obtained by fraud or duress.
The prospective adoptive parent and the individual who executed the consent mutually agree in writing to set it aside.
The petition to adopt is voluntarily dismissed with prejudice.
The court dismisses the petition to adopt and no appeal has been taken, or the dismissal has been affirmed on appeal and all appeals have been exhausted.



Registry/Paternity Requirements to Receive Notice
Citation: §§ 48-2-206(a), (c); 48-2-401

The putative father:

Must file within 15 days of receiving notice of the mother's intent to place the child for adoption
Is not entitled to further notice of adoption proceedings if he fails to respond
Must file a response to an adoption petition within 30 days after service of notice




Who May Adopt
Citation: Gen. Stat. § 48-1-103

Any adult may adopt, except that spouses may not adopt each other.

Who May Be Adopted
Citation: Gen. Stat. § 48-1-104

Any individual may be adopted.

Who May Place a Child for Adoption
Citation: Gen. Stat. § 48-3-201

The child may be placed by any of the following:


An agency
A guardian
Both parents if married and living together
A parent with legal and physical custody of the child





Adoptions can get very complicated very quickly. Do retain an attorney for this as you do not want to find out later that something was missed.

get a lawyer and do not do it without...

I just need to point out that the listing OSM posted is what the state posts as reasons and abilities to do adoptions, however, it isn't as easy as that is written. Those are written more for the state when they have a child in custody with no loving parents. From what I have seen in the past, step-parent adoption seems to be more difficult than regular adoption in cases where the parent losing parental rights can not be found or does not agree to the adoption.

Since in your case he agrees, it shouldn't be too difficult but does still require a lawyer for the protection of all parties involved.

I will also say that judges like to see the new parents married a year before adopting children.

okay i have a major question does anyone know the process of having rights terminated or signed over to another individual in NC, my childs father and I have decided this would be best for him and i need to know where to begin can anyone please help

You can google NC Statutes ... the ones that are primarily going to apply are going to be NCGS 48-4-101 through 48-4-103. However, make sure you also abide by any statutes that are referenced in those listed.

If all three of you are in agreement, and no one starts seesawing about it, then there may not be a great deal of hassle about it, but I'd say wait at least 6 months after you are married to pursue it.
Be prepared for DSS to get involved, to do employment history and criminal background checks on your husband.

A LOT of what you need is in Form form located on the DHHS website. I think this is all of them ... but don't absolutly hold me to it. If you are fairly confidant about your abilities, and you can find an attorney to work with you, you MIGHT be able to talk him down some on his fee if you do all the paperwork, and just hire him to check your work and do the filing for you. Thats how I did it, but it will depend on you and the attorney. Good Luck :)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-5189-ia.pdf (consent of parent who is spouse of stepparent)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-5162-ia.pdf (petition for adoption)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-5190-ia.pdf (consent of parent who is NOT spouse)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1807-ia.pdf (Order for Report on proposed adoption)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1808-ia.pdf (report on proposed adoption ....... this form is actually filled out and filed by DSS when they do their interview and then their in home study. I got a head start and filled out all the basic stuff for them, just to make it a little faster and easier for the worker)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1811-ia.pdf (Medical Exam ... this is just something your child's doctor fills out and signs,no big deal usually, but DSS has to have it)


http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-5191-ia.pdf (disclosure of fees and expenses)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1814-ia.pdf (decree of adoption)

http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1815-ia.pdf (report to vital records)

I don't have any wisdom to share, just wanted to add that I think a lot of it also just depends on what judge you get, as to how easy it is....

There was a case in NC (people I know here, not my immediate family) where the dad was in debt $12,000 in child support. The mom just wanted the money, settled for $6,000 and signing over his rights. The judge agreed to it. Dad walked away with paying half the support he owed and accepting no responsibility for his twin children in the future. (And this particular Mom later landed herself in jail for abusing the kids, isn't that grand).

That judge didn't do too much checking, for sure...

God Bless!
Amy

In NC, if it isn't contested, it never sees a judge ... the Clerk of Court handles it all, including signing the Final Adoption Decree.