What if the other parent won't sign consent in Vermont?

If the other parent won't sign consent in Vermont, your adoption is not automatically stopped, but what happens next depends on your family's facts, and the Probate Court decides. A refusal to sign and a parent who is simply absent or hard to reach are different situations, so it helps to know which one you are in.

Where abandonment fits in. Vermont's abandonment period is 6 months, found at 15A V.S.A. § 3-504. If the other parent has been out of the child's life, this is the provision to look at. Whether your situation meets it is a question for the court, so a Probate Court clerk or a Vermont family law attorney can tell you how it applies to your facts.

If the other parent is involved and says no. When a parent is actively part of the child's life and refuses to consent, the case is likely to be disputed, and the outcome turns on details specific to your family. We recommend talking with a Vermont family law attorney before you file, in addition to any document help you use.

Other consent points to know:

• If your child is 14 or older, the child's own consent is part of the process under 15A V.S.A. § 2-401.
• Vermont does not treat termination of the other parent's rights as a separate case from the stepparent adoption.
• Questions about notice to the other parent, or what to do if you don't know where they are, should go to the Probate Court clerk or an attorney. Those answers depend on your circumstances.

Before you file.

• You or the petitioner must meet Vermont's residency requirement of 6 months, under 15A V.S.A. § 3-101(a)(1)-(2).
• You file in the Probate Court in your county. Vermont has 14 counties, and the clerk can confirm the current filing fee and local procedures.
• Home studies are waived for stepparent adoptions under 15A V.S.A. § 4-110(a).
• Stepparent adoptions in Vermont typically take 3-6 months. A contested case may take longer, and the clerk or an attorney can tell you what to expect.

What you can do now:

• Write down when the other parent last saw or spoke with your child, and keep any messages, cards, or records of contact or lack of it.
• Note whether you have a current address for the other parent.
• Ask the Probate Court clerk in your county what the court needs when a parent has not consented.

A parent's refusal can feel like a dead end, but many parents in your position go on to file, and the first step is to understand which category you are in.

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 Vermont county. You file it yourself, without an attorney. The cost is $349 for the first child and $99 for each additional child. Your court-ready documents arrive within 24-48 hours after you finish the questions, and our 100% court acceptance guarantee applies. We have helped 87 Vermont families, and more than 34,000 families nationally since 2001.