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Hello,
Here is a bit of back story, my brother passed away in Dec. 2012 leaving behind a 1 year old daughter with a mother who was and is still incapable of caring for her (addiction, bad choices, etc). In December 2014 she finally decided to let my niece live with me, my 2 children and my fiance (now wife). My niece has lived with us ever since, calls me Mommy and my children her brother and sister, she knows nothing else but our family. I am her "custodial parent" according to the state of WA and we have a child support case open to show this. We relocated to TX in April 2016 and naturally things are different here.
My nieces bio-mom has now said she will voluntarily relinquish all rights because she is unable to care for the child and does not want to remove her from our care. I am ecstatic! Except I do not know what I need to do to get the ball rolling? Kindergarten starts in the fall and I have used our child support paperwork to show that I am her parent but I am sure that will not be sufficient. Plus I am tired of being told we aren't her parents here. I guess I just need some direction?
I saw someone say that a case worker was helping them get things going at the expense of the state since they were caring for a relative and had been for a while. Is this applicable in my situation? I do not necessarily see the need for a lawyer since the mother is willing and won't contest? Any help is greatly appreciated.
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You could either go in 3 directions.
The paperwork that you need to complete the Adoption ' Pro Persona ' . Either should be or is Online... Either in Texas or in State of Washington.
The 2nd direction is there should be some type of Legal Assistance for both you and your ' Niece /Daughter ' ... Either in Texas or in State of Washington.
Personally and Professionally, I would utilize the court. Wjre or that you have Validated and Advocative Paperwork!!
You need to have Dad's Parental Rights Terminated as well also, and I would not say . ' Your case will be easy or a ' piece of cake ' as well also. '
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Thank you so much for your reply. My brother (her father) is deceased so his parental rights are not in question. I have gotten a copy of the order and will be asking the court to move the case to Texas so I can be named her legal guardian.
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Hiring an attorney might be worth the money just to make sure that you're dotting all your is and crossing all your ts. A lawyer will be familiar with the process and forms and will be able to make sure you get through the process quickly and painlessly. Since your case is straightforward, legal fees shouldn't be too astronomical.
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