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Stepparent/Domestic Partner Adoption

For general adoption information, visit the Judicial Counsel of California Self-Help Guide to adoptions. 

Family Court Services only conducts Investigations related to Stepparent Adoptions pursuant to Family Code Section 9000 in which the petitioner has requested that Family Court Services conduct the investigation.  Family Court Services also conducts any Declare Free from Parental Custody and Control investigations filed with the Court related to a concurrently filed Stepparent adoption ONLY.

The Stepparent/Domestic Partner Adoption Packet can be found in the local forms on the court website here: step-parent-adoption-packet-jan-2024.pdf

Once your petition for Stepparent Adoption (including a petition for Freedom from Parental Custody and Control, if applicable) and any related supporting documents are filed with the Court (see packet instructions above), you or your attorney will provide a copy of your filed documents to Family Court Services, Room 204, at the Visalia Courthouse; or provide a set to the counter clerks at the South County Justice Center, which will be routed to Family Court Services. A copy of any subsequently filed documents should be provided to Family Court Services.

STEPPARENT OR DOMESTIC PARTNER ADOPTION INVESTIGATION PROCESS:

There are potentially two phases to the Stepparent Adoption Investigation process here in Tulare County. Phase I is a petition for Stepparent Adoption only, wherein the non-custodial parent has consented (agreed in writing) to the stepparent/domestic partner adopting the child. The form used for this consent is located here and should be filed with your petition: AD2A_2B.pdf . or, if the non-custodial parent is deceased, the death certificate of the non-custodial parent shall be filed with your petition; or if the non-custodial parent’s rights have been terminated by Court Order, this Order shall be filed with the petition.

If these situations above do not apply, then our Investigation enters Phase II, where a petition for Declare Free From Parental Custody and Control will be required to be filed with the Stepparent Adoption petition.

PHASE I  - STEPPARENT/DOMESTIC PARTNER ADOPTION PETITION ONLY:

Once Family Court Services has been provided copies of the petition for Stepparent/Domestic Partner,  your case will be assigned to Family Court Services staff if you selected in the Stepparent Adoption petition for the Court to conduct the investigation. If you selected for a private therapist to conduct the investigation, then the matter will not be assigned to a Court Investigator.

Once all mandatory documents have been received including all requested documents including the local form Stepparent/Domestic Partner Adoption Informational Questionnaire ( STEPPARENT ADOPTION INFORMATIONAL QUESTIONNAIRE), all verification documents, and the proposed stepparent has completed LiveScan background fingerprinting, and all references have been received, then the case will be assigned to a Court Investigator/Child Custody Recommending Counselor. The Court Investigator will contact the petitioners to conduct interviews to be held at the Family Court Services offices with the custodial parent, the adoptive stepparent, and the minor children to be adopted.   The Court Investigator will then write a report and make a recommendation to the Court regarding whether the stepparent adoption is in the child’s best interest, and whether the petitioner is a suitable adoptive stepparent/domestic partner. Once the adopting stepparent receives the completed report in the mail, the petitioner and/or their attorney of record, will then place the matter on calendar for the stepparent adoption hearing.

It is important to note that the Court Investigator can only proceed with your investigation if all of the information referenced above is received. It is the responsibility of the proposed adoptive parent to keep in contact with Family Court Services regarding the progress of your investigation.  If you have a change in contact information, it is mandatory that you notify Family Court Services staff at (559) 730-5000, Option 6 with this updated information. You will be directed to contact the Self-Help Resource Center or your attorney to file the necessary change of contact information with the Court, and to provide FCS with a copy. If FCS staff are not able to reach you to conduct the interviews, this will delay your court process.

PHASE II - STEPPARENT/DOMESTIC PARTNER ADOPTION INVESTIGATION PROCESS WITH A PETITION TO DECLARE A MINOR FREE FROM PARENTAL CUSTODY AND CONTROL:

Please note that the process to declare a minor free from the custody and control (terminating parental rights) of a non-custodial parent is a complex process and many parties seek legal assistance during this process. The Court Investigator/Child Custody Recommending Counselor does not and cannot provide legal advice on these matters.

Once Family Court Services has been provided copies of the petition for Stepparent/Domestic Partner Adoption AND any petition for Freedom from Parental Custody and Control, your case will be assigned to Family Court Services Court Investigator/Child Custody Recommending Counselor if you selected in the Stepparent Adoption petition for the Court to conduct the investigation. If you selected for a private therapist to conduct the investigation, then the matter will not be assigned to a Court Investigator.

At the time of filing, there is a court date set for the petition for Freedom from Parental Custody and Control. As such, it is very important that ALL mandatory documents have been received as soon as possible (and ideally filed with your petition) including all requested documents including the mandatory local form Stepparent/Domestic Partner Adoption Informational Questionnaire ( STEPPARENT ADOPTION INFORMATIONAL QUESTIONNAIRE) , all verification documents, and the proposed stepparent has completed LiveScan fingerprinting. Once received, the Court Investigator will contact the petitioners to conduct interviews to occur at the Family Court Services offices with the custodial parent, the adoptive parent, and the minor children to be adopted.   The Court Investigator will then write a report and make a recommendation to the Court regarding whether the termination of parental rights of the non-custodial parent meets the criterion listed in the petition before the Court,  and whether termination of the parental rights of the non-custodial parent is in the best interest of the child. This report will be mailed to the parties of record.

It is important to note that the Court Investigator can only proceed with your investigation until all of the information referenced above is received. It is the responsibility of the proposed adoptive parent to keep in contact with Family Court Services regarding the progress of your investigation.  If you have a change in contact information, it is mandatory that you notify Family Court Services staff at (559) 730-5000, Option 6 with this updated information. You will be directed to contact the Self-Help Resource Center or your attorney to file the necessary change of contact information with the Court, and to provide FCS with a copy. If FCS staff are not able to reach you to conduct the interviews, this will delay your court process.

It is common for the Declare Free from Parental Custody and Control phase of the investigation to take several months to complete, with multiple court hearings, especially if proper attempts to locate and notice the non-custodial parent has not been completed to the satisfaction of the Court. If the Court terminates the parental rights of the non-custodial parent, the petitioner should notify the Court Investigator so that the Stepparent Adoption report may be prepared and submitted, after the mandatory 60-day appeal period is exhausted. There may be delays to this completion of the stepparent adoption process if all reference letters are not received as requested by Family Court Services, or LiveScan fingerprinting is not completed by the petitioner. Once the adopting stepparent receives the completed report in the mail, the petitioner and/or their attorney of record, will then place the matter on calendar for the stepparent adoption hearing.

CONTACT WITH THE COURT INVESTIGATOR/CHILD CUSTODY RECOMMENDING COUNSELOR:

When the Court Investigator contacts the proposed adoptive parent, the Court Investigator will ask you questions about you and your household members so that an inquiry may be made to obtain any Child Protective Services involvement with the family. This is one reason why accurate and detailed information is necessary in the mandatory local form, STEPPARENT ADOPTION INFORMATIONAL QUESTIONNAIRE,  as noted above.  If this information is incomplete, this may also delay your court process. In addition, the Court Investigator checks local court records on the parties in the case and provides a summary of this information to the Court in the reports. 

Mandatory Background Check for the Adoptive Parent:

In Tulare County, the proposed adoptive parent shall complete a CLETS background check through the LiveScan process in the State of California. The Court Investigator will inquire into the status of the completion of the required Live Scan Fingerprinting.  The Live Scan Fingerprint form may be obtained from the Self-Help Resource Center at either Court location. It can sometimes take months to receive results from the Department of Justice, so it is important this is completed ASAP, otherwise it may cause a delay in the investigation. Please remember to turn in a copy of the completed Live Scan form to Family Court Services in Room 204 of the Visalia Courthouse,  or to the front counter at SCJC, who will forward it to FCS staff. This way we can track your results.

COURT INVESTIGATION FEES:

If the Court assess a fee for the Court Investigation, you will be ordered to pay these fees at the time of the Court hearing for the Stepparent Adoption and any related investigation for Freedom from Parental Custody and Control. This is a separate fee than the filing fee.

FAQs

There is not a simple answer to this question, and it is dependent on many factors. It can take a few months to six or more months. A major factor is how quickly forms are returned and the accuracy of the form completion.

If you have not received a call within 30 days of the court referring the matter to FCS for investigation, you may contact FCS at 559-730-5000, Option 6 and request the name and telephone number of the assigned investigator. Staff will return your call within 48 hours of receipt, unless they are out of the office.

You may contact the Self-Help Resource Center located in both Visalia and at the South County Justice Center to obtain the Live Scan background fingerprint forms and instructions.

To Family Court Services in Visalia (Room 204) or to the front counter at the clerk’s office at SCJC, which will be routed to FCS for tracking the results.

The children do not need to be present at the hearing for the termination of the non-custodial parental rights unless they are ordered to by the Court. The children to be adopted must be present at the Stepparent Adoption hearing.

Yes, you may bring family and a camera to take a picture with the Judge, if so desired, to celebrate the happy occasion!

Yes. If you are asking the Court to terminate the non-custodial parents’ rights, children age 7 and older will be interviewed by the Court Investigator and must be asked statutory questions about their non-custodial parent, with a few exceptions. It is not the role of the Court Investigator to inform the child of their non-custodial parent.

If the non-custodial parent has consented to the adoption, the same statutory questions are not required, but the children will be in Court and will hear that the proceedings involve a stepparent adoption, so exposure to the topic is important. The child will be asked in the interview about what they know about the adoption and whether they consent to the adoption. Children ages 12 and older must consent to the adoption, and will sign a consent in open court at the court hearing.

Yes. Although the Court prefers that the proposed adoptive parent and the custodial parent have been married/in a domestic partnership for more than a year, this is addressed on a case-by-case basis during the investigation. Many factors are considered such as the duration of the relationship between the proposed adoptive parent and the child.

Not necessarily. Every situation is evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and this will be addressed in the interviews with the Court Investigator.

If the child turns the age of majority (age 18) during the investigation, that child cannot be adopted through a stepparent adoption. If the parties desire to proceed with an adoption after the age of 18, they may consider an Adult Adoption. There are currently no Judicial Council forms for this process and the parties would have to conduct their own research. The link above about Adoptions also has additional information. The Law Library located on the Ground Floor of the Visalia Courthouse has examples of forms used for this process in the Procedural books under the topic “Adult Adoption”.

You may file a request for dismissal with the Court. Please contact the Self-Help Resource Center or your attorney for direction. Please be sure to serve these documents on Family Court Services.

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