Hello, my name is Frances Gutierrez. I’m an attorney here at the firm.
I am going to talk about adoptions. We often receive clients who want to proceed with step-parent adoption. That often arises when a parent leaves the child or children in the custody and control of another parent and that parent then remarries.
The process for adoption requires a petition being filed with the court seeking to
terminate the parental rights of the non-custodial parent. Usually, it’s either the presumed father or the biological father or it can also be the biological mother. If the parent consents then that usually minimizes the time and for the court to have the matter proceed and the termination or what they call here in Ventura County freedom from petitions. If they don’t consent and they contest the termination, depending on the process that can go on for up to a year or more depending on the issues that are being contested.
An adoption normally takes, you know, 60 days after termination is granted or consent is granted from the time the request is made to the time it’s actually heard and then the actual proceeding for adoptions usually takes 20 minutes, if not a little less than that. Our office handles various types of adoptions including independent relative adoptions and adoptions that fall under let’s say a guardianship.
If you are interested in one of these types of adoption, certainly give us a call. Our contact information is on the website. I’m actually going to do a series of videos that discuss the details of different types of adoptions that are available. One of the types of adoptions we do not do are agency adoptions. That’s usually handled through the county. If you’re interested. Let us know!