Stepparent Adoption: What Constitutes Abandonment?
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009
In Colorado, a stepparent (someone married to a biological parent) can adopt a child if it can be proved that the other biological parent has abandoned the child for the previous 12 consecutive months. CRS 19-5-203(1)(d)(II).
In the recent Colorado Appeals case No. 07CA2169, In the Matter of the Petition of J.A.V., and Concerning N.K.B. The Colorado Court of Appeals states that Abandonment requires leaving a child willfully and without intent to return. In this case the biological father was under a protection order that prohibited any meaningful contact with the child, despite the fact that he had filed a petition for allocation of parental responsibilities and motioned the court to modify parenting time. These actions all took place in the 12 consecutive months prior to the filing of the stepparent adoption proceeding.
The district court found that the father "took no actions to pursue (his) relationship or have access to his daughter" and allowed the stepparent adoption to go through.
The Appeals Court found that by ignoring the biological father's efforts to obtain parenting time with his child through the court system, the district court erred by not properly applying the definition of abandonment regardless of whether the father might have done more to enforce his rights. The Appeals Court reversed the order terminating the biological father's parental rights and the case was remanded to the district court to proceed with the parental responsibilities case brought by the biological father.
In the recent Colorado Appeals case No. 07CA2169, In the Matter of the Petition of J.A.V., and Concerning N.K.B. The Colorado Court of Appeals states that Abandonment requires leaving a child willfully and without intent to return. In this case the biological father was under a protection order that prohibited any meaningful contact with the child, despite the fact that he had filed a petition for allocation of parental responsibilities and motioned the court to modify parenting time. These actions all took place in the 12 consecutive months prior to the filing of the stepparent adoption proceeding.
The district court found that the father "took no actions to pursue (his) relationship or have access to his daughter" and allowed the stepparent adoption to go through.
The Appeals Court found that by ignoring the biological father's efforts to obtain parenting time with his child through the court system, the district court erred by not properly applying the definition of abandonment regardless of whether the father might have done more to enforce his rights. The Appeals Court reversed the order terminating the biological father's parental rights and the case was remanded to the district court to proceed with the parental responsibilities case brought by the biological father.
