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Legal assistance re: stepchild adoption!

Seaborn111Seaborn111 Registered User regular
edited February 2011 in Help / Advice Forum
So i recently got married to my college sweetheart. She has a 3 year old son who has only known me since birth, she and i have been together since he was about 5 months old. I am going to adopt him as my own now that we are married, but i have questions.

Does anyone know any details specific to the process in Oklahoma? Or have links to documents required?
Details:

We've are married
the biological father gave up all rights to the child, and we have the court documents to prove this
we have lived in-state for a year and a half
we are financially stable

we do nooooooot want to hire a lawyer for approximately $3,000 to get this going when i have seen contested stepchild adoptions being done for little more than court costs by educated parents. Considering this is a completely uncontested adoption i feel i should be able to come in around that bottom number :)

any legal heads out there with help/shortcuts/free lawyers? hahaha

</bush>
It's impossible for us to without a doubt prove the non-existence of God. We just have to take it on faith that he's imaginary..
Seaborn111 on

Posts

  • OnTheLastCastleOnTheLastCastle let's keep it haimish for the peripatetic Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    You could go talk to someone at the courthouse. They might have paperwork and that's all it'll take. I'm not sure what office, look it up or just go and ask. They're closed for President's Day tomorrow though.

    I know a lawyer, if I talk to her later I'll ask.

    OnTheLastCastle on
  • dzenithdzenith Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    Clerks at the county courthouse cannot tell you how to do anything - it is considered giving legal advice, which they are not allowed to do. And honestly, you wouldn't want legal advice from a clerk anyways. There may be "pro se" paperwork that you can fill out to file a petition for an adoption case in your county. If the forms exist, they are likely on the district court's website. In the courthouse that I work in, only small claims and divorce cases have pro se forms though. Your district could be different - many don't have any pro se forms at all.

    Likely you will have to talk to an attorney to draft the paperwork for you. My advice is to use one even if you are able to draft pro se paperwork yourself. People fuck up their paperwork all the time when filing cases themselves. You have no idea how many people fuck up their pro se divorce cases and think they are divorced when they really aren't.

    dzenith on
  • ceresceres When the last moon is cast over the last star of morning And the future has past without even a last desperate warningRegistered User, Moderator Mod Emeritus
    edited February 2011
    Long shot I suppose, but your state might have a website on which they may or may not have posted some of this information. Sometimes rules, documentation, and even forms for simpler circumstances is just posted.

    ceres on
    And it seems like all is dying, and would leave the world to mourn
  • OnTheLastCastleOnTheLastCastle let's keep it haimish for the peripatetic Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    http://www.ehow.com/about_6636735_child-adoption-oklahoma.html

    edit: my internet connection died before I could add something important. It says you need the consent of both biological parents unless one has terminated rights.

    OnTheLastCastle on
  • KakodaimonosKakodaimonos Code fondler Helping the 1% get richerRegistered User regular
    edited February 2011
    I'd start here.

    OKDHS Adoption FAQ

    You're going to have to go through the OK DHS for this as part of the process. So read that over and I'd give them a call.

    Kakodaimonos on
  • dzenithdzenith Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    That looks like it is for adoption of kids that are in custody of OKDHS...

    dzenith on
  • ceresceres When the last moon is cast over the last star of morning And the future has past without even a last desperate warningRegistered User, Moderator Mod Emeritus
    edited February 2011
    OnTheLastCastle wrote: »
    http://www.ehow.com/about_6636735_child-adoption-oklahoma.html

    edit: my internet connection died before I could add something important. It says you need the consent of both biological parents unless one has terminated rights.

    Check. Says it in the OP, so he should be in the clear. :D

    ceres on
    And it seems like all is dying, and would leave the world to mourn
  • OnTheLastCastleOnTheLastCastle let's keep it haimish for the peripatetic Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    This should be a really easy process. And yeah, that DHS website was about adopting one of the kids in foster care. They would probably be able to help you though. Really, it's just a legal process... no one is contesting anything so it isn't legal advice, I don't know why they wouldn't say "Here is the form" or "Go talk to that person."

    If the father were still involved, different story. Best of luck, this makes me pretty happy for all of you.

    OnTheLastCastle on
  • SimpsoniaSimpsonia Registered User regular
    edited February 2011
    Go to the main courthouse at your county's seat (if your county if large enough to have more than one courthouse). Inquire as to when/where they have family law/domestic relations help desk time (typically about once a week). They should be able to point you to all the forms that you need. Failing that, ask the clerks. Even as a practicing attorney, I still ask the clerks questions all the time, and almost always get helpful answers.

    Once you get your case on the docket and make your first appearance, feel free to ask the judge's clerks questions as well (generally not while the judge is in the courtroom though heh), they are often incredibly helpful and know exactly what you need to fill out and how for any next steps.

    Good Luck.

    Simpsonia on
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