Legal Question in Family Law in New Jersey

adoption of child by mother and her husband.

My boyfriend has 3 children with an ex-girlfriend. When they split up the relationship, the ex was with another man who abused the children. the children were taken from the mother and put into foster homes, where 2 of the children 8 and 13 reside. the 16 year old is with the mother. My boyfriend has just found out that the mothers husband is adopting his 8 year old son. they mother was only aloud suporvised vists with the boys because of the abuse she allowed to take place with an ex-boyfriend. The adoption is to take place in June, is there a way of having the adoption stopped before that time. for many years my boyfriend has tried to set up residency for his boys, but the state continually dragged out the process, which never took place. he has been paying his support faithfully for his boys, and does not feel that taking the 2 boys from foster care where they are living well, and putting them into a trailer park setting is going to benefit the 2 boys. does he have any rights to stopping this action of adoption. if so what needs to be done.


Asked on 4/16/02, 7:43 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Ryan Dornish Ryan A. Dornish, Attorney At Law

Re: adoption of child by mother and her husband.

Please be advised that I have not been retained to represent you and I am basing this reply on the limited facts supplied. The standard Courts use in dealing with child custody issues is called "the best interest of the child." The Court used this standard in removing the children from the home and placing them in foster care and the children will not be removed from foster care and allowed to be adopted by their mother's new boyfriend without a hearing. At that time, your boyfriend should have a right to attend the hearing and provide evidence stating that living with the mother and her new boyfriend is not suitable. Also, if your boyfriend still has parental rights, the children cannot be legally adopted by another "father." The brief answer to your question is that there may be a possibility that your boyfriend could do something but I would need a lot more information before I could provide advice which you could rely on and I am available to discuss this further if you wish to contact me at 908-537-7975. If you cannot afford an attorney, there are legal services offices in every county to assist those who qualify.

Good Luck!

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Answered on 4/27/02, 5:56 pm
Bruce Matez Gerstein Grayson, LLP

Re: adoption of child by mother and her husband.

Thank you for your e-mail. The issue that you raise is extremely fact-sensitive; therefore you should consult with an attorney and not rely on the information in this message. Your boyfriend must waive his parental rights before any of his children can be legally adopted by another. Barring that, at a Court hearing, if he is deemed an unfit parent, his parental rights could be terminated. Your boyfriend should immediately seek representation by legal counsel in this matter. Any of our firm's experienced family law attorneys can provide guidance and representation. Please call to schedule a consultation. 856-795-6700 K.Scheiner

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Answered on 4/30/02, 3:09 pm


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