[BrandyHagz]

I am very familiar with SPA laws in Texas - and your friend is VERY lucky. Had the court not forgiven the back support (which is becoming more and more common) - he would have had grounds for overturning the adoption, based on fraud/coercion.

The court (unless it was the judge ruling...and I find it odd that the father was even in court, since his participation in a SPA (or any type of adoption) doesn't require him to be a party, beyond singing a notarized document outside of court) can't tell someone what will happen in a case, until the case is in front of a judge and a judge makes a ruling.

An attorney told my son's father he wouldn't have to pay support any further (some random, uninvolved attorney) and based on that advice, he signed. That attorney was wrong. He still has to pay the back support he owes, and had I been the one to say something about "Support will stop if you allow this to go thru" he would have had grounds to file a case based on coercion. Offering money (even money owed) in exchange for TPR is exactly that...and more and more judges are starting to come down hard on parties who use that as a tool to get rights terminated...

In court, when I asked about back support, the judge over the adoption proceedings indicated to me that they were no longer ruling on back support during adoption proceedings in my state – because it was a separate issue and they were seeing to many cases involved the exchange of forgiveness for rights. He indicated that the biological father and us could petition the court, once the case was complete, to have them forgiven, if we wanted to – but arrearages forgiveness was not an adoption issue and would not be heard.

And while yes, the adoption does go through the court - rarely do the adopting parties disclose that they've offered forgiveness of support and/or money in exchange for the TPR - and because adoption is a family court issue, the parent who has had their rights Terminated are not a party to the proceedings...and obviously can't stand up for him/her self.

The bottom line – leave it up to the attorneys involved – and even then, know what they're doing. While attorneys are professionals, they aren’t above making empty promises, especially in cases of adoption.

Don’t mention money (back or future support). If he doesn’t want to do it, then you’ll have to find other, legal ways, to Terminate his parental rights.