Fort Bragg Area Stepparent Adoption Attorneys
With more than 30 years of experience each, our lawyers provide comprehensive adoption representation, which includes interstate, stepparent and private placement adoptions. We recognize that adoptions are a joyous occasion, and we dedicate substantial time, energy and resources to helping our clients achieve their goals. Additionally, we understand the complex legal processes and guidelines that must be followed to ensure a joyous outcome.
At Hedahl & Radtke Family Law Center, our Fayetteville adoption attorneys understand North Carolina's legal guidelines that govern all types of adoptions. We can evaluate your unique situation and provide guidance based on decades of experience. Joan E. Hedahl and Debra J. Radtke are Board Certified Family Law Specialists who have been protecting the rights of North Carolina families, as well as North Carolina fathers.
Extensive Representation
Depending on the type of adoption you wish to pursue, you may be subjected to specific regulations, including home studies and pre-placement assessments by the Department of Social Services. Our law firm provides representation for those interested in:
Interstate adoptions. These involve private placement of children between states. These adoptions are strictly regulated, and if rules are not met, you could face criminal violations.
Stepparent adoptions. When parents remarry, they can pursue having their new spouses adopt their children. These adoptions may require the termination of parental rights, which can make adoptions difficult.
Private placement adoptions. North Carolina law allows birth mothers to place a child with strangers under specific parameters directly, without going through an adoption agency. The Department of Social Services or other organizations authorized to handle pre-placement assessment for private adoptions such as Catholic Charities charge for their services, which are mandatory.
Termination of Parental Rights
In stepparent and private placement adoptions, certain situations can permit the custodial parent to terminate the other parent's rights to allow the adoption to proceed. If a parent was not in the child's life or abandoned the child, you can file a proceeding based on abandonment. Fathers in North Carolina need to make their disapproval known if they do not want their child to be adopted. The state's parental rights laws are strict and take many factors into consideration when allowing father's rights to be terminated, including:
- Whether the father was paying child support
- Whether the father is in the child's life
- Whether the father filed a paternity action
- Whether the father left before the child was born
At Hedahl & Radtke Family Law Center, we handle paternity cases from both points of view. We can help defend you against a termination of your parental rights if you wish to remain in your child's life as a parent. Additionally, we provide representation for fathers who deny or wish to assert their paternity.
Contact Us Today
From our office in Fayetteville, North Carolina, we provide diligent family law representation for individuals throughout Cumberland County, including military personnel or their spouses stationed here, overseas, or at another post with cases in Cumberland County. To talk to an attorney about your situation, call us today at 910-401-2148. For our clients' convenience, we also accept e-mails.
