QUESTION: I am getting married within the next year. My fiancé currently has two kids from two different men. Neither father at birth wanted to be on their kid’s birth certificate. One child is 3 the other is 17 months old, both children are currently living with me along with my fiancé, as they have for the past 6 months. The fathers see them every so often; the 3yr old father maybe once every 3 months, the 17mth old father sees him about once a week for a day. My question is once we are married what legal/ parental rights do I have pertaining to the children that would then be my step children? Also if anything were to happen to my fiancé after marriage, leaving me to raise the kids alone, what legal/ parental right would I have then since neither father is on the birth certificate? If she were to appoint me sole custody and legal guardian of the kids would there be any way their birth fathers could over rule this in court to try to gain custody of their children?
MY RESPONSE:
You don't get "legal rights" to your stepchildren by marrying their mother.
Were you to want to adopt the children, the fathers would need to consent to the termination of their parental rights, inasmuch as the Court won't terminate, for adoption purposes, the parental rights of a parent who has visited or contributed to the support of a child at any time during the past year.
If your wife appoints you as the children’s legal guardian on her death, the fathers could seek custody of the children unless you had adopted them.
This educational blog is brought to you by DONALD F. CONVISER, an effective and aggressive Los Angeles Family Law Attorney and Divorce Lawyer serving clients in the courts of Los Angeles and Ventura County for over 35 years,owner of Warner Center Law Offices, with offices in Woodland Hills and Century City. Call 888.632.4447 or 818.880.8990 for a free confidential consultation with a Certified Family Law Specialist to discuss your divorce or family law issues. | www.conviser.net | www.conviserfamilylaw.com |
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