Looking for Information on Stepchild Adoption

Hello
It cost my husband and I $955.00 for him to adopt my daughter and it took 1 yr to do. They told me $800 and have it finished within 6 months, but we had some roadblocks in finding her biological dad. We did this all in another state but the laws and procedures were identical to MN. You have to first get the consent of the biological parent and if you cant find them you have to get another form saying you tried everything to find them and couldn't. and they will have to draw up an affidavit of abandonment saying the biological parent has abandoned the child for a period of 1yr. then the present parent has to sign a consent saying they want there child adopted by there spouse (duh!) then they'll file a petition to terminate other parents parental right, yay!! there is a lot of paperwork but hey isn't it worth it in the end? We had a great lawyer who walked us through step by step, I hope you do too. a background check will be done on the adopting parent. Also you'll have to have a petition for stepparent adoption
our list of cost went like this.
Attorney fee: 750.00
Filing fee: 139.00
New birth cert.: 35.00
CBI background check: 13.00
FBI background check: 18.00
I cant remember but if you change there last name i think it's 11.00 for a new ss card, but i could be wrong.

You should be able to contact any Family Lawyer for a free consultation, they will be able to answer all your questions. make sure to ask if they are familiar with step parent adoption and how many they have done. It's your right to get someone knowledgable so if there is a fight you have someone who knows what they're doing=) Good luck and i hope this at least gives you some idea of what your heading into. I also had know idea what to expect but beyond the extra 6 months we waited it was worth it.

Here are two resources I found on a google search.

http://www.rapidlaw.net/adoption.html

http://step-child.adoption.com/

I work for a lawyer and I know she's done an adoption by a stepparent before. Mostly it's working with the county to get the right documents and paperwork and I believe 1 or 2 court appearances. One of the other responders mentioned background checks - I don't recall having them done but maybe. And in the end, you get a new birth certificate with the stepparent's name on it. I would say to contact your county first and see if they have any tips for you or a list of what all needs to be done.

Congratulations! It is actually quite easy. You do have to be married at least a year, but otherwise there is just some paperwork and a couple of hundred dollars in fees. Then you go to court (once), the step father swears that he understands that he would now be financially liable for this child, even in the case of divorce. I didn't have to have any background checks done, and the bio dad was all for it (no more child support!) I would talk to a family lawyer. I am guessing they can help you with the paperwork for a minimal fee (or maybe not, who knows what lawyers charge!). I did it about 10 years ago, and the wierdest part is the papers make it almost look like you are adopting your own child! We started the paperwork right when we had been married a year, and it was complete within a few months.

HI J.,
I had my step-dad adopt me when I was 18, because my bio-dad wouldn't allow it. It was so easy for me. If I remember correctly, you have to have a court hearing (no matter the age) to plead your case, if you will. This give the other parent the chance to come in and contest it. If they are a no show, you plead your case and it's done. BEST THING I EVER DID~