Stepparent Adoption in Illinois: Steps and Consent

What a stepparent adoption does

Under Section 17 of the Adoption Act, once the judgment is entered, the parent whose rights end is relieved of all parental responsibility and loses all legal rights as to the child. The parent who joins the petition keeps every parental right and responsibility. The stepparent becomes the child's legal parent, the same as a biological parent. If you want to adopt a stepchild in Illinois, the first question is usually whether the other parent will consent.

That makes adoption very different from guardianship, which leaves parental rights in place, and from a stepparent's limited ability to seek parenting time. The petition can also ask for the name the child will use, so a separate name change case is usually not needed.

Who files and the basic requirements

The Adoption Act defines a related child to include a child whose adopting parent is a stepparent by marriage or civil union. Key rules for a related adoption:

• Both spouses join. Under Section 2, a married petitioner's spouse must be a party, including when one spouse adopts the other spouse's child. The parent spouse's signature and verification on the petition count as that parent's consent under Section 8(b)(5).
• No 6-month residency rule. The usual requirement of 6 months' Illinois residence does not apply to a related child.
• File any time. A petition to adopt a related child may be filed at any time, in any Illinois county.
• The child's consent at 14. Under Section 12, a child who is 14 or older on the date of judgment must consent in writing.

Consent from the other biological parent

Consent or surrender

Under Section 8 of the Adoption Act, consent is required from the child's mother and from a father who qualifies, for example a father who was married to the mother when the child was born or within 300 days before the birth, a father under a parentage judgment or voluntary acknowledgment, or a father who maintained the contact and support the statute describes.

In a stepparent adoption, the other parent usually signs a consent to adoption by the named petitioners rather than a surrender to an agency. Section 10 requires the consent to be acknowledged before a judge, an agency representative or a person the court designates, and not the adopting parents' lawyer. Under Section 11, a properly executed consent is irrevocable unless it was obtained by fraud or duress, and no action to revoke it may start more than 12 months after it was signed.

When consent is not required: unfitness

Consent is not needed if the court finds the parent unfit by clear and convincing evidence, or finds another exception in Section 8, such as a man who is not the biological or adoptive father or a father who signed a valid waiver. The grounds of unfitness in Section 1(D) include:

• abandonment of the child;
• failure to maintain a reasonable degree of interest, concern or responsibility for the child's welfare;
• desertion of the child for more than 3 months before the case began; and
• intent to give up parental rights shown by failing for 12 months to visit, communicate with or plan for the child while able to do so.

An unfitness claim is contested litigation, and the court decides it on the evidence. See our page on what makes a parent unfit in Illinois and our article on voluntary termination of parental rights.

Filing in the Cook County County Division

In Cook County, adoption petitions are heard in the County Division of the Circuit Court, whose main location is the Richard J. Daley Center, not in the Domestic Relations Division. The court's adoptions page lists related adoption, including stepparent adoption, as its own case type with required forms and procedures.

1. Gather the child's birth certificate, your marriage or civil union certificate, any parentage, custody or support orders, and the other parent's last known address.
2. Prepare the verified petition. For a related child, Section 5 requires the petitioners' names and residence, the child's name, birth date and sex, each petitioner's relationship to the child, the parents' names and residences if known, the new name requested and any earlier court orders affecting the child's adoption or custody.
3. Obtain the other parent's acknowledged consent, or plead the ground on which consent is not required.
4. Serve every parent who has not consented. If a parent cannot be found after diligent inquiry, Section 7 allows notice by publication.
5. Attend the hearings the court sets, including any contested unfitness hearing.

How long it takes depends mostly on consent. With signed consents and no investigation ordered, a related adoption can move to judgment once service is complete and the return day has passed. Publication adds the weeks the notice must run, and a contested unfitness claim adds evidence, more court dates and a hearing. Bring papers from any other case involving the child, because a custody or support case may be pending in a different division.

Background checks, the hearing and the new birth certificate

The full investigation, often called a home study, that Section 6 requires in other adoptions is not made in a related adoption unless the court orders it in its discretion. Section 13 also lets the court waive a guardian ad litem for the child in a related adoption when the child is not in DCFS care. In practice, the Cook County judge decides whether to order an investigation, background checks or a guardian ad litem in your case.

The 6-month waiting period after an interim order does not apply to a related child. Under Section 14(f), the judgment may be entered any time after service of process and the return day. Adoption files are impounded and opened only by court order.

For a child born in Illinois, the State Registrar of Vital Records establishes a new birth certificate after receiving the certificate of adoption or a certified copy of the order, unless the court, the adoptive parents or the adopted person asks that one not be issued, under 410 ILCS 535/17.

Related adoptions for same-sex spouses

The same rules apply to spouses and civil union partners of any gender. If a child was born during the marriage or civil union, the non-birth spouse may already be a presumed parent under 750 ILCS 46/204. Some families in that situation ask whether a confirmatory adoption also makes sense, which is worth reviewing with a lawyer. See our LGBTQ family law page and our guide on establishing parentage in Illinois.

What the other parent can do

The other parent can sign a consent, refuse, or contest an unfitness claim and present evidence of contact, support or efforts to stay involved. A parent who signed a consent can try to void it only for fraud or duress, and only within 12 months. A parent who was never served properly may challenge the judgment later, which is one reason careful notice matters.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using a notarized letter as a consent. The consent must follow the Section 10 form and acknowledgment rules.
• Forgetting the child's own consent. A child 14 or older must consent in writing.
• Assuming nonpayment of support alone proves unfitness. Unfitness is proved by clear and convincing evidence on specific grounds.
• Filing in the wrong division. Adoptions in Cook County go to the County Division.
• Skipping notice. Every parent who has not consented must be served.

How Chicago Family Attorneys can help

Chicago Family Attorneys handles family law only from 53 W Jackson Blvd, Suite 752, in the Chicago Loop, serving Cook, DuPage, Will and Lake Counties. Attorney Aaron Korson can review whether consent is available, prepare the petition and consent documents, arrange service or publication, and appear at the hearings. Learn more on our adoption services page.

• Full representation. An initial payment of $1,500 to $2,500, then $500 to $650 per month beginning 30 days after the initial payment while representation remains active.
• Limited scope. A flat fee for a defined task, such as preparing specified adoption documents or appearing at a specified hearing, quoted after a consultation.

Court filing costs, any guardian ad litem fees, background check charges and publication costs are separate. See adoption attorney costs, and if guardianship may fit better for now, read how to get guardianship of a child in Illinois.