Lone Tree Stepparent and Third-Party Adoption Lawyers
Handling Guardian and Stepparent Adoption
The adoption process can be a maze of legal twists and turns. At the law firm of Stowell, P.C. in Lone Tree, Colorado, our lawyers know how to navigate the adoption process quickly and efficiently and can help you bring your new family together with minimum delay.
Our lawyers are skilled in the handling of stepparent adoptions, foster parent adoptions, third-party adoptions, foreign adoptions and domestic ones alike. In the majority of the adoption cases we handle, the children are already living with the adoptive parent and a pseudo-parental relationship already exists. The adoption proceeding just gives legal recognition and authority to the parent.
Adoption is a Two-Step Process
Before a child can be adopted, the rights of the biological parents must first be terminated. One or both parents may have to relinquish their rights, depending on the type of adoption being sought. Rights can be given up voluntarily, or can be involuntarily terminated by the court.
In Colorado, parental rights can be terminated without dispute if the biological parent in question has had no contact with the child in the past year or has paid no child support in that time.
Parents who wish to adopt must complete a background check and a criminal history check. Once all of the groundwork is done and all the "t"s are crossed, the adoption itself is finalized at a short court hearing. A legally recognized adoptive parent has all the same rights, responsibilities, challenges and opportunities of a biological parent.
Schedule an Attorney Consultation
To discuss a guardian or stepparent adoption with a lawyer at Stowell, P.C., call 888-353-9358 or fill out our contact form. From our office in Lone Tree, Colorado, we represent clients in the Denver metropolitan area and throughout Douglas, El Paso and Pueblo counties.
