Can I adopt my stepchild if there is a restraining order against the biological parent in Delaware?

You may be able to pursue a stepparent adoption in Delaware even with a restraining order against the biological parent, but how the order affects your case depends on your facts. The Family Court clerk in your county or an attorney can confirm that for your situation.

What a restraining order does and doesn't change. A restraining order is a separate court matter from an adoption. How the Family Court weighs an existing order, and how the biological parent must be notified when an order is in place, are questions to ask the clerk or an attorney. An attorney is especially worth consulting if the case is contested or you are unsure where the other parent is.

Delaware requirements that still apply to you:

• Court: Your petition is filed in Family Court.
• Your age and status: You must be over 21 when you file, and either a Delaware resident or a person with whom the child was placed under 13 Del. C. § 904 (13 Del. C. § 903).
• Residency period: Delaware sets no minimum length of residency before you can file.
• Child's consent: A child who is 14 or older must consent (13 Del. C. § 907(b)).
• Home study: Delaware does not waive the home study for stepparent adoptions (13 Del. C. § 912).
• Termination of parental rights: In Delaware, this is handled as a separate step from the adoption itself.
• Abandonment: Delaware's abandonment period is 6 months (13 Del. C. § 1103). Whether the parent's situation meets that standard is a question of facts for the court.

Your safety comes first. Follow every term of the restraining order. If you are worried about how the other parent may react to the adoption, talk with local law enforcement, the clerk, or an attorney about how notice is handled so you are not putting yourself at risk. The order's terms and the court's notice procedures are things to ask about directly rather than assume.

Timeline. Stepparent adoptions in Delaware typically take 4-6 months. A contested case or one with notice complications can differ, and the clerk can tell you what to expect in your county. The filing fee is set by the court, so the clerk can confirm the current amount.

Questions to bring to the clerk or an attorney:

• How the restraining order interacts with notifying the biological parent
• Whether the termination of parental rights step looks different in your situation
• Whether a hearing will require anyone to be in the same room, and what protections the court can arrange

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 Delaware 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 arrive within 24-48 hours after you finish the questions, and we back them with a 100% court acceptance guarantee. We have helped 89 Delaware families. If your situation involves a restraining order, we recommend confirming the legal questions above with the Family