Q: Will a lawyer help me fill out adoption petitions and report of adoptions for free?
I'm getting married in October 2015. My fiancee wants to adopt my 5 year old son once we're married. However, my fiance is not my son's biological father. My son's father lives across the country and has never once seen him, helped with him, paid child support, anything. But I need help filling out the forms, and I just wanted to know if a lawyer will just help me fill out the paperwork, like a guide. Just someone to help me understand everything it wants so this doesn't gets messed up. I can handle the court and judge, I'm not trying to hire a lawyer or anything, just someone to help me deal with the paperwork.
A: If you qualify for free legal services, you may well find an attorney to assist you through Rhode Island Legal Service or the Bar Association Volunteer Lawyer Program. If you can afford to hire an attorney, that would be your best avenue. Adoptions are rather a specialized area of practice and the fees you will pay are a sound investment in ensuring your child's future is secured properly.
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