Totally ridiculous question.

Sawyerplus1

Hey, I'm just curious b/c I know nothing about situations like this or their legal precedings (and yes, I got this off the Days of our Lives storyline).

If a teenage girl got pregnant, didnt notify the father , and gave the baby up for adoption, would the father have any chance/legal right of getting the baby back (assuming of course that he found out about the adoption)? I mean, its not like he gave up his rights as father. Silly question, but does anyone know?

aegrimm

I say yes. But, I'm no lawyer.

Dr.BeepersWife

Ha!  I love DOOL!  I have been watching it since I was 13 (16 years!)

Bruner1

I have no idea but used to watch Days and am now very curious which character you're talking about?

Chicky5801

I think so, if he found out about it because he never gave up his rights legally.

aggielauren

The baby wouldn't have been able to be put up for adoption without notifying the birthfather. They have to have him terminate his rights.

ETA: In some weird situation that I don't think could happen, if the baby was given up without notifying the father, he would have a legal right to try to get the baby back because he never gave up his rights.

taagent

I watch that too!  I think that before an adoption to actually be legal (which this wasn't to begin with since Nicole never actually adopted either of the babies), the father has to sign away the rights as well or at least some effort has to be given to locate and then I think if that doesn't happen it is put in the paper to give "adequate notice".

nikll34

I don't know much about the subject either, but I am assuming that the father still has legal rights and also assuming he is a "fit" father to begin with. Not sure if not being a "fit" father gives you legal rights?

Interesting thought though!

bonnin507

Kind of had this happen to someone I know. The girl told him at the last minute, after she already had the new parents picked, so he could sign off on the adoption.  He was young so he agreed to it, but partly because the adopted parents kept the adoption open & he gets to see his son. 

jacse007

This happened to some people I know around KC or somewhere up there. They were the adopting parents. The girl said she didn't know who the father was and the couple had already gotten the baby. Apparently the father got wind of it and fought to get the baby, and succeeded. Crazy and sad because the adopting parents were crushed.

KMK51

I also know a couple that went through the same thing as PP.  They had him from birth to a few months old until the father found out the mother gave him up for adoption.  The father now has custudy and I believe the adoptive parents are still in his life and since have adopted 3 siblings who all have different fathers/same mother.  So sad but they now have 3 siblings that didn't have to be separated from each other. 

mrs.Awoods

Yes - Biological father can take the child back at any time... and I believe unless the father is deceased, the teenage girl would HAVE to have him sign away his rights before the adoption. (but I'm no lawyer either)

bobbidall

I think as part of the adoption process they have to find out about the father.  He would still have rights if he did not give them up. 

ScissorTailedFlycatcher

I think that if she claimed that she didn't know who the father was, the adoption was still continue. I think it would be a situation like taagent described where the BM would have to put something in the paper to see if she could find him.

My good friend (who is 26 and married to a 30-something) just found out that she has a 17yo SD. Her DH had no idea that she existed. Not sure what would have happened if the BM had tried to give her up for adoption. ?

galwaybabe

The laws are a bit different in every state, but the bottom line is that a parent has to have their parental rights legally terminated to lose all rights to their children.   A parent can willfully relinquish them or have them taken away (which requires probably even more than letting your child float away on a hot air balloon).  But, it's a big deal and courts don't do it lightly.

So, if the father somehow slipped through the mother's adoption proceedings and then wanted to exert his parental rights later, he absolutely could.

The courts make their decisions based on what is in the best interests of the child, and there is a strong presumption that being with a biological parent is in the best interests.  Hope that helps!

Jennifer Hassan

that would be terrible if the father was good guy who wanted to step up to the plate!!

I know a guy who was finishing law school, his girlfriend was 4 months pregnant and had an abortion without his knowledge after they had already planned for the baby!! There was nothing he could do. Apparently her biggest complaint was she was a model and wasn't ready to "sacrifice her body". She didnt discuss it with him but it was her right they say. He told her he would have raised the baby on his own if she didn't want the responsibility. They are no longer together

Mrs.AMRichards

I watch Days so I know what you are talking about. But I saw a local news story about this sorta thing too. The girl had slept with like 4 guys and didn't know who the father was. Well she had slept with 3 of the guys more than once so they did the paternity tests first then once they were ruled out the 4th guy who she had slept with only was went in for his paternity test. After this it had been past 30 days and in Alabama if a father doesn't claim his child with 30 days he loses his rights. So he had no parental rights and the baby had already been adopted. He is trying to get the baby back but since it has been like 2 years since birth is isn't likely.

Kitty*Mama

I think Chad does have rights since he wasn't afforded the opportunity to give up his rights to begin with and also because the adoption was done under the table with no attorney or anything.  But in reality he doesn't have rights since that baby wasn't really his and Mia's, but rather Sami's and EJ's.  When are they going to have a DNA test done on Sydney that isn't tampered with by Nicole or Stephano??  I am so eager for the day when Sami finds out what Nicole did and kicks the everliving you-know-what out of her!

kimisuejoia

It varies from state to state. A lot of birth mothers come to UT to place their babies because UT law says that a father has 9 months to figure out he got someone pregnant and if he doesn't file a claim by the time the child is born then he is out of luck. The birth mother has a much longer window to change her mind, but the father has to do something before the child is born.