Shpuld i Adopt my fiancés daughter?: My fiancé currently has 50/50 custody of his daughter and she wants to stay with us full time now. Her birth mother said she wants to terminate her parental rights and wants me to adopt her in order to stay with us full time. Can't she just terminate her rights with out me adopting her? I am not yet married to her dad.
Antoinette’s answer: No. In order for the birth mother's parental right's to be terminated, there has to be a replacement mother to take her place. A court would also be reluctant to terminate the birth mother's rights unless the replacement mother had been married to the bio-father for a least a year and was enthusiastically willing to adopt the child. Remember, this is a very big responsibility and the child could easily stay at your home full time without the need for such a drastic step.
Can I force my 13 year old to come to my house during my custodial time???:
I have shared custody of my 2 children. My 13 year old daughter has been angry ever since her mother and I separated. She doesn't want to come to my house during "my time." And her mother's lawyer has advised her not to encourage or forcer our daughter to visit me.
I have consulted law enforcement and know that I can't be arrested for forcing her to come... but really, what are the legal ramifications if I do? I would practically need to force her to come kicking and screaming. We used to be close, so I know that given some time, we can rebuild that relationship, but I don't know what my rights are to get her to at least try. Do I need to go back to court?
Antoinette’s answer: I would not advise forcing your daughter to come and visit. You cannot build a mutual relationship that way. I would suggest that you ask the Mother to permit you to take the child to counseling to work on your relationship. If she refuses or the child fails to attend, then file a motion to force the Mother to take the child to counseling. It is the only realistic way to help repair a relationship that has been so badly damaged. Courts will gladly grant an order for counseling between a parent and a child.
How do i stop a wage assignment?: if i have a wage assignment on my former spouse, how can i stop it and just let him pay me as scheduled. I just dont need it anymore
Antoinette’s answer: If you are receiving aid from the County you will be unable to stop the wage assignment. If the wage assignment is not through the County, you can have it terminated by filing a request with the court to have it terminated. I suggest you seek the assistance of an attorney or make an appointment with the facilitator's office of your local court and they will help you with the forms. Caution: Once you terminate the wage assignment, you have no way to assure you receive your payments on a timely basis or at all.