[BrandyHagz]

is it also illegal or frowned upon if we planned on paying off the amount?

You can't forgive arrearages - you can only make suggestions in court to the judge, who will then make the decision. If you want to pay off the amount owed to the state, make that suggestion in court, but don't make any promises to anyone.

Who do we contact first?

Contact the Maricopa County Attorney’s office Adoptions Unit – (Google it) – leave a message if you get voice mail, they do call back. They will send you a packet, outline all of the required stuff.

If this is a non-contested adoption, you shouldn’t have to hire your own attorney.

The next step, after making sure you meet all the requirements for adoption, is to contact the Homestudy agency (They will send you a list of providers in your area) and start that process.

how do the judges feel about lawyers?

Well, since most judges were once lawyers, I assume they like them – but I can’t speak for every judge

If you’re asking do you need to have one to do the adoption – the answer is yes, that is what the county attorney is for – they will represent you, free of charge, in an uncontested step parent adoption. You are not required to hire private counsel unless the adoption will be contested.

The Termination of Parental Rights is pretty straight forward – but I don’t think the County Attorney provides the documents for that. There are places on the net that sell the documents, should you need to purchase them.

What is the minimum allowed years to be married before a stepparent can adopt?

Sorry, I don’t know the answer to this, because this wasn’t an issue for us, we’d been married for more than five years. The general rule, I think, is one year though, so be sure to ask when you call. The process to proceed with a step parent adoption is about six months, although we’re getting it done in just under 4 months (start to finish) – so its possible you could apply now, start the process and have it become final just after your anniversary.

Is there a "guide" for Stepparent Adoption in AZ?

Not that I am aware of – but the Maricopa County Attorneys Adoptions Unit packet contains a lot of really useful information. I highly suggest you start there then move forward.

Arizona is one of only a few states that handles the legal process of finalizing adoptions, without the adopting family having to hire an attorney to do it.

Good luck! We finalize next week!