Step Parent Adoption in San Diego County – How to Adopt a Stepchild

Does San Diego County Require a Home Study to adopt a step child?

A detailed "home study," as would be done if you were adopting an unrelated newborn, is not  required in step parent adoptions. Instead, step parent adoptions have what is called an "investigation," which is simpler and less expensive.

Until recently, the San Diego County is the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency was the only option to do the investigation. (Their fee is $270.) Now a recent law allows you to choose a licensed private adoption agency to do it instead - so using the benefits of the private sector as compared to a governmental agency, which tends to be much slower. For this reason the private agency option is normally recommended for speed and ease-of-use, despite its slightly higher cost ($700).

What Documents does San Diego County Require for a Stepparent Adoption?

Only a few documents are required, such as the child's birth certificate, the adopting parent's birth certificate and your marriage license. And if there were any prior marriages, a copy of the divorce order.

What are the rights of the absent parent (usually the birth father)? Does he  come to the final court hearing?

There are two legal categories of birth fathers, "alleged" and "presumed," and their rights vary. Basically, a presumed father has stronger rights as they are either named as a parent on the child's birth certificate, is or was married to the mother, or had the child in his home and held out to others as his child. A birth father's consent is required and if he won't consent, an action to terminate his parental rights is required. Often this is based upon what the law calls "abandonment".

The absent parent has no role in the final adoption hearing granting the adoption. His, or her, consent - or termination of their rights  - was done before that hearing. The finalization is your  special day, with just you and your invited guests in a private hearing. To learn more about the laws of birth father rights, and how to complete an adoption if he can't be found or won't consent, please visit our Advanced Q and A page.

What Legal Pleadings Does San Diego County Require to Adopt a Step Child?

Most step parent adoptions require a total of about 6-9 legal filings or attachments. Typically this is your Adoption Request, Adoption Agreement, Indian Child Welfare Act forms, Order of Adoption, VS-44 form and agency final report. These are all prepared by the attorney you select however, so you don't need to worry about preparing them. To learn about how to select an attorney and judge their qualifications and experience, and typical stepparent adoption costs and legal fees, you may do so here.

How Long Does It Take to Complete a Stepparent Adoption in San Diego County?

Every California county is different in the time it takes to complete a stepparent adoption. And, of course, every case is different. But on average if there are no objecting or absent birth parents delaying the adoption, the total time is about 5-7 months. Fortunately, San Diego is quite prompt in scheduling the final hearings once the required agency report has been received approving the adoption. Typically it is about 6 weeks later.

Do We Get a New Birth Certificate Changing Our Child's Last Name?

Yes. You will receive an amended birth certificate listing the stepparent as one of the biological parents, replacing the terminated parent, and you can also change your child's name if you wish. (For example, it is common to change a child's last name to match the adopting stepfather.) In effect, you get a completely free legal name change without the separate legal filing and  "newspaper publication of intended name change" that would otherwise be required.

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