The biological parent hasn't seen my child in over a year. Can I adopt in Louisiana?

Yes, very likely. Louisiana sets an abandonment period of 6 months (La. Ch.C. Art. 1245), and a biological parent who hasn't seen your child in over a year is past that mark. Whether your situation meets the legal definition of abandonment depends on the facts, so the District Court in your parish can confirm how it applies to you.

What the 6 months means for you. Louisiana's adoption law is in Louisiana Children's Code Title XII. Because your timeline is longer than the 6-month period, you have a solid starting point. A parent's absence is one part of the picture. The court will still want the petition, the sworn paperwork and the notice to the other parent handled properly.

Notifying the other parent. Even when a parent has been out of the picture, they still have to be formally notified. Louisiana allows:

• Personal service by the sheriff.
• Service by publication if the parent's location is unknown, but only after due diligence in trying to find them.

If you don't know where the other parent is, a clerk or an attorney can tell you what counts as enough effort in your case.

Other points that matter in your situation:

• Residency: Louisiana has no minimum residency period (La. Ch.C. Art. 1180). You do need to be domiciled in the state, meaning Louisiana is your permanent home.
• Child's wishes: Louisiana does not require your child's consent. The court asks for and considers the wishes of a child 12 or older.
• Home study: It is waived in stepparent cases (La. Ch.C. Art. 1252(A)).
• Where you file: The District Court in your parish. Louisiana has 64 parishes, including Orleans (New Orleans), East Baton Rouge, Caddo (Shreveport), Lafayette and Calcasieu (Lake Charles).

Timeline and cost. Stepparent adoptions in Louisiana typically take 3-6 months. Court filing fees run about $200-$400, and the total typically comes to under $1,000 when you file on your own. Attorney-handled adoptions often cost $3,000-$5,000+. You'll also likely need an updated birth certificate afterward, which comes from the Louisiana Office of Vital Records.

When to get individual help. If the other parent contests the adoption, if you can't locate them, or if there's anything unusual about your family's history, talk to the District Court clerk or an adoption attorney about that specific issue. Those situations turn on details that vary from case to case.

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 parish. 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've helped 881 Louisiana families, and 34,000+ nationally since 2001.