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I am really going to try and make this as short as possible. My daughter and I moved from Missouri to California in June of last year to be with my now husband. He and I had dated long distance for 3 years. During those 3 years, I had been trying to get my now ex husband to let us move to California where I knew my daughter would thrive and receive a better education and an all around more stable environment. We went to court in 2011 because he refused to let us re-locate (keep in mind that he did not see or try to contact his daughter for 1 year previous to the court date) and the judge told us that because he stated he loved and cared for his daughterӔ we could not move at the time. My attorney informed me that I would have to stay in Missouri and not relocate or attempt to take him back to court until there were drastic changes. So we waited for yet another year before I wrote him a letter stating that we were relocating and since he had neglected to abide by the parenting plan that he presented to the courts that we were leaving. I then got a letter from his attorney stating that if I would give up child support, pay for her to fly back to Missouri on holidays and he stayed with her then he would allow us to leave. OK something wrong with that picture? YES So I told him that he could keep the child support and that I would fly her back 2 times a year but she was to stay with my mother. (Why put a child on a plane 1800 miles from home not knowing if he would show up or not, he had made no attempt of any form of communication for 2 years now). He came back and said no child support, no health insurance no nothing but if she did come back it was up to her if she wanted to see him or not. It has now been 4 years since he has seen or spoken to his daughter (15 Ž). My daughter has asked my husband if he could adopt her. She says that he has been more of a dad to her in the past 4 years than her father in 15 . I have read several different scenarios for step parent adoption. (1) Since he has made no attempt to contact or see the child in over a year it is considered abandonment (2) Must have a signed consent to relinquish all parental rights of the biological father (3) If he does not show up for court dates and did not sign the release then she can be adopted. We are not at a point where we can afford attorneyݒs fees but this is something that she is wanting. So I am here trying to find out how to go about this etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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