[jazzibelle22]

I am about to file my paperwork for my husband to adopt my daughter. my ex has signed the consent form to let the adoption proceed, but before i file i need to make sure i have all of the right paperwork. I dont know for sure if i need to also include the putative father registry search motion, being that the father of my daughter and i were married at the time of conception and birth and he has consented. Please help. Thank You!

[Mollyp0p]

Yes you absolutely need to do a search on the putative father registry. I was also married when my daughter was conceived, but it doesn't matter. It is an across the board mandatory step in the process. If you need the form, I have it and can send it to you. HOWEVER... if you haven't done so yet, you need to file a motion with the court to allow the search, and the judge will send you back an order granting the search. THEN you will need a certified copy of the order (which they don't send out strangely enough), BUT since adoption records are locked you can't get into your case file, even if you are self represented like I am. You will need your case manager or a supervisor in the adoption part of the family law clerks office. What county are you in? We seem to be in step with eachother and maybe we can help eachother out.

[jazzibelle22]

alachua county. i dont have a representative. what do i need to do? as far as I know, im suppose to take the joint petetion, signed consent, indian child welfare form, uccjea form, motion for search of putative father regisrty search, application for the search, order granting the search (form), the final judgment form and the childs birth certificate and file them all at once. is that right? do you know of any other forms that I might need? I dont have to have the birth father served do i, since he signed the consent form? Please get back to me when you have a chance, thank you. Oh one more thing. When you fill out the putative father registry search application that you get from vital statisticis, in the putative father section, are you suppose to provide the information of the birth father? or the adopting step father? since the step father is the petetioner in all the other paperwork, does he fill out the application and submit it to vital statistics (along with the order granting the search)? does vital statistics send the search results directly to the courts or to the person that filled the application out? I have no idea.

[Mollyp0p]

You don't file the order granting the search, the judge does. You just file the petition, consent, indian welfare, uccjea, and motion for the search. and yes file it all together. you don't need to serve him since you have consent. the putative father registry searches for other "potential" fathers, so you need to put the bio-father info in there. you fill out the app but dont sign it on the back. vital stats sends it directly back to the court.

I evidently have a case manager, but have never spoken to him/her and am not allowed to contact them until they contact me, hows that for beuracracy? Anyway, if your order to search comes back without a stamp from the clerk of the court office, just call the clerk's office, family division and tell them you need a supervisor to get a "certified copy of the order to search the putative father registry" once the order goes through. Tell them you are self-representing and just need to get the application to vital statistics with a certified order so you can finish filing your petition. But who knows, you might get a smart enough clerk to actually stamp your order as well as the one that goes in the case file.

If you need the application let me know and I can email it to you. They emailed it to me though, so it's pretty easy to get.

Good luck!

[jazzibelle22]

ok, so the judge just supplies his/her own forms for orders granting and for final judgment? thats just that much that I dont have to deal with. Thank you so much for your wisdome on this subject. How will you know if the order comes back unstamped? how do you know when the judge actually orders the search and when and how do you get the certified copy of the order to take to vital statistics? do the courts send you a letter or something saying the order to search was granted? do you know how much it costs to get a certified copy of the order? and how much certified copies of the final judgment are? Oh, I was emailed the application from vital statistics also, im not suppose to sign where?where it says "signature of registrant?" thats the only place my copy has to sign anywhere. what about where it asks if you want certification mailed to another person or address? are you suppose to fill that part out?

[Mollyp0p]

yes you'll get a letter telling you to go ahead with the search, and the order will be signed or something, but look for the county seal, kinda like a notary. Vital was very helpful when i called, so call them with questions. and if you need the order stamped, just call the clerks office, get to a family clerk supervisor and they'll do it for you. mine just took my registry search application and filed it with the stamped order for me. so one less step i had to take. and NO you are not the registrant, that is the father who is putting himself into the registry, you dont have to sign anywhere.