Voluntarily Terminate Parental Rights
by Jessica from Orlando, Florida, Orange County
What forms do I need for voluntary termination of parental rights?
I have an 8yr old daughter whom I have been taking care of and supporting for since she was born.
Her father left us when she was about
3 months old and has not been back since.
He is however on the
birth certificate so she has his last name. I recently came in contact
with him and he has agreed to grant sole custody of our daughter to me
and terminate his parental rights.
We were never married, so we
wanted to know what forms do I need for him to sign so I can submit them
to the court. I live in Orlando and he lives in Miami.
Answer to Florida Family Law Question
Dear Jessica,
Florida judges do not grant a voluntary termination
of parental rights unless there are extreme circumstances or there is
someone in the wings ready to adopt.
The extreme circumstances
can be if the parent is in prison for a long time; is a habitual
offender; or is addicted to an illegal substance or alcohol.
Someday you might want to collect child support from your ex to help you support your daughter.
It
is an easy way out for him to simply terminate his parental rights, and
be on his way.
For all practical purposes you already have sole
custody.
And if your ex has not asserted his parental rights he
likely has very few anyway.
It is not up to him to agree to grant sole
custody to you; or to terminate his parental rights.
Reader Comments
Voluntarily Terminating Parental Rights in Florida
by: Ashley from Maryland
My fiance signed away his parental rights at the request of his
ex wife. He pays child support monthly and on time. I read on here that
Florida does not terminate child parental rights unless an adoption is
occurring or the other parent is unfit.
Neither is the case with my
fiance. My question is how legal is this termination and what documents
should he have stating the termination of parental rights?
My
fiance is a hard working good man. He has never been in serious trouble.
He pays child support monthly and on time. He has made arrangements to
pay arrears in child support. He was asked by his ex wife to sign over
parental rights to their child. He did so with no contest.
It is
my understanding that Florida family court does not terminate parental
rights with out just cause. It is my understanding that volunteering to
terminate rights is not necessarily going to grant you termination of
child support is that true?
--You are correct. In general, in
Florida, parents cannot voluntarily terminate parental rights unless
there is a pending adoption. A parent can request that the court grant
sole custody, but Florida courts have a strong bias toward shared
parental responsibility. It may be that he has every right to visit his
child, and has simply been duped by his ex wife.
My suggestion
is that, if he wants to see his child, he petition the court for
visitation. He may as well, since he is paying support. Terminating a
child support obligation is nearly impossible, unless the child is
adopted by someone.
For example, if his ex wife remarries, and her new husband wants to adopt the child; and your husband consents, then he can voluntarily terminate parental rights. And, in that case, his child support obligation would end. --Staff
Terminating Parental Rights
by: Teresa from Venice, Florida
My husband has a child from a previous relationship that he
received full custody of in 2009. He is defiant, does drugs, stole
things from family members and classmates. He molested my 4yo son when
he was 3. He went to the grandparents to stay and we just recently
pressed charges.
Since he has been at the Grandparent's house,
he has stolen from them, got a referral from school and has been
suspended for 5 days. All within 2 months. The Grandparents do not want
to take custody or guardianship. The boys counselor said it wouldn't be a
good idea for them to take that responsibility. (Why I don't know!)
They forced my husband to not press charges when this all happened in
December though we went and did it recently.
The boys bio-mom is
not in the picture at all. She has not even started her case plan, (the
one from 2009 when the kids were taken) and she has 0 custody but she
has rights. We are in a bind. The Grandparents are saying that we are
taking him back in our home. That is NOT an option.
I have 3
children ages 10 and under and will have them live like that. Besides
what he had done to my son, he was constantly telling me he wished I
would leave and die and a lot of other things as well. If my husband
terminates his rights, will the state charge him for abandonment AND is
it even possible to terminate rights if the CHILD is the abuser?
--OMG
What a sad story. I really feel for you and your family. It sounds to
me that your are doing everything you can already. Pressing charges and
getting DCF involved would be my recommendations, but you are already
doing that.
The short answer to your main question is that your husband
cannot simply terminate his rights voluntarily. He will probably need to
have DCF do that for him and have the child deemed a ward of the state.
--Staff
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