Q: The father of my child left us in the hospital. He never reached out and never signed a birth certificate. She’s 4 now,
My fiancé wants to adopt. How long do we have to be married for? Can he adopt before marriage?
A: It would probably be best to get married first and then adopt. Even though the biological father is not on the birth certificate he is still legally the father and has rights, so when you and your future husband do get married and he (your future husband) goes to adopt your child, you and your future husband can do a joint petition for him to adopt. You and he will have to serve process on your child's biological father, giving him the chance to come and oppose the adoption. If you cannot locate him (your child's biological father) you can serve him with process by way of an order of publication (which requires running an ad in the newspaper for so long), if your child's biological father does not show up the adoption will likely be considered unopposed and will move forward. You should reach out to a local family lawyer in your area to help you.
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