[butterflymama1]

I did not name a father on my daughter's birth certificate. My boyfriend and the only father my daughter has ever known would like to adopt her. My two questions are
Do we have to be married for him to adopt her?
Will I need to contact the biological father even though he is not on the birthcertificate and has never seen her?

[Maggiecatm]

I am not sure what your state laws are but in my state of nebraska i think if there has not been any contact with the chid by the bio patent then you can have her adopted by your boy frien. you may want to look up your laws and see what it states we are currently going threw a similer situation my ex husband dose not have very much contact and my husband wants to adopt my kids. but look up laws for step parent adoption and see if that helps you

[alvarez_leoatx]

Since you did not name a father on your child's birth certificate you do not need to notify the bio father. What you have to do is go down to your local Birth Certificate Office. You have to request a change form.(This will cost you, depending on what there rates are, in Texas it is $9) Your boyfriend will have to sign a form stating that he is the father. Once you have all this filled out and paid for they will issue you a new birthcertifcate for your child having his name as the father and they will add his last name to hers if you want. You can also look at there ofical website. Just call down to your local birth cartifcate office and ask for there web address. It will give you all the info you need. Good luck!!!

[Eventually]

Having your boyfriend put his name on the birth certificate when he knows he is not the father is considered fraud and ILLEGAL! You both can get into alot of trouble for doing it.

And no, courts don't usually let boyfriends adopt their girlfriend's children. Depending on state law, you must be married for a determined length of time, usually one year.

[Byngee12]

Originally posted by Eventually
Having your boyfriend put his name on the birth certificate when he knows he is not the father is considered fraud and ILLEGAL! You both can get into alot of trouble for doing it.

And no, courts don't usually let boyfriends adopt their girlfriend's children. Depending on state law, you must be married for a determined length of time, usually one year.

Thank you for pointing out the obvious. Adopting a child and claiming paternity for a child are 2 very different things. IMO you need to consult an attorney and get the facts. Tara