Can a father on a life sentence have his parental rights terminated in Delaware?

A father serving a life sentence may be able to have his parental rights terminated in Delaware, but the ground we can point to is abandonment under 13 Del. C. § 1103. Whether the sentence alone is enough is a question for the Family Court clerk in your county or an attorney, because it depends on the facts of your case.

What Delaware sets out for abandonment: Delaware's abandonment period is 6 months under 13 Del. C. § 1103. If the father has had no contact with your child and has not supported or been involved in the child's life for that period, abandonment may be the ground to explore. Prison itself is not the issue here. What matters is whether he has stayed in the child's life. How the court weighs letters, calls, visits or support from inside prison is a fact-specific question for an attorney or the court clerk.

Termination is a separate step: In Delaware, the termination of parental rights is handled separately from the adoption petition. In practice, that means:

• The termination is addressed first, as its own filing in Family Court.
• The adoption moves forward after that.
• Your county's Family Court clerk can tell you how notice is delivered to a parent who is incarcerated and how much time he has to respond.

Other things that apply to your adoption:

• Court: Family Court, in the Delaware county where you file (there are 3 counties).
• Residency: There is no minimum residency period. Under 13 Del. C. § 903, you must be over age 21 when you file, and either a Delaware resident or a person with whom the child has been placed under § 904.
• Child's consent: If your child is 14 or older, their consent is part of the process under 13 Del. C. § 907(b).
• Home study: Delaware does not waive the home study. See 13 Del. C. § 912.
• Timeline: Stepparent adoptions in Delaware typically run 4-6 months, though a contested termination can change what your case looks like.

When to get individualized help: If the father is likely to oppose the termination, or you are unsure whether his situation fits abandonment, talk with a Delaware family law attorney about your specific facts. The Family Court clerk can answer procedural questions, such as forms, filing, and service on a person in a correctional facility, but cannot give legal advice.

How we help: StepParent Adoption 360 is a document preparation service, not a law firm. You answer questions online, and we prepare the complete court document package for your county. You then file it yourself without an attorney. The price is $349 for the first child, plus $99 for each additional child. Court-ready documents are delivered within 24-48 hours after you finish the questions, and we offer a 100% court acceptance guarantee. We have helped 89 Delaware families and more than 34,000 families nationally since 2001.