Can both my spouse and I adopt each other's children from prior relationships in Maine?

Yes, in Maine each spouse can ask the Probate Court to adopt the other's child, and each of those adoptions is a stepparent adoption under Maine Revised Statutes Title 18-C, Article 9. This is often called a cross-adoption or mutual adoption. The goal is for every child in your blended family to have both of you as legal parents.

How it works in Maine:

• You adopt your spouse's child, and your spouse adopts yours. Each child's adoption is its own stepparent adoption.
• Adoptions are filed in the Probate Court in your county. Maine has 16 counties, and each has its own court.
• Whether the two adoptions can be filed together or need separate filings, and how the court schedules them, is something the Probate Court clerk in your county can confirm.

Requirements to keep in mind for each child:

• Residency: Maine has no minimum residency period (18-C M.R.S. § 9-301).
• Child's consent: A child who is 12 or older must consent to their own adoption (18-C M.R.S. § 9-302). If you have children on both sides of the family, check each child's age.
• Home study: Maine waives the home study for stepparent adoptions (18-C M.R.S. § 9-304).
• The other parent: Each child has another legal parent outside your household, and that parent's rights have to be addressed in each adoption. Maine's abandonment standard is six months (18-C M.R.S. § 9-204; 22 M.R.S. § 4002(1-A)). Whether a particular situation meets it depends on the facts. If the other parent is unknown, hard to find, or likely to contest, talk to the Probate Court clerk or an attorney about your specific case.

What the court looks at: Maine law on some cross-adoption details, such as how the court treats two adoptions in one family or any limits on who can be adopted, should be confirmed with the Probate Court clerk or an attorney. Those details depend on your family's circumstances.

Timeline: A stepparent adoption in Maine typically takes 3-6 months. Ask the clerk whether your two adoptions can move forward at the same time.