On behalf of The Law Office of Gustavo E. Frances, P.A.
When adoption is challenged in court, the outcome is usually heartbreaking for one side of the dispute. In a recent case, a man took his case to the highest level in his state of residence and was successful in having his daughter’s adoption overturned. In an unusual twist, the man was able to win, despite the fact that paternity testing revealed that he is not the child’s biological father. The outcome may be of interest to many Florida fathers.
The little girl was born to unwed parents. The couple filed paperwork establishing the man as the child’s father. Within a year, the man received notice that the child was being placed for adoption. He refused to give up his parental rights at that time but did not have the means to immediately hire an attorney to handle the child custody case. In the meantime, court action in another state moved forward, and the child was legally adopted by another family.
The adoption was allowed because the man had undergone genetic testing that revealed that he was not the child’s father. However, court action in the state in which the child was born had established the man as the girl’s legal father. When the man challenged the adoption in appeals, it was this fact that led the adoption to be overturned.
This case is certainly a win for the child’s father, who never consented to have his daughter placed for adoption in the first place. However, it is a tragedy for the adoptive parents, who have grown close to the child and planned to raise her as a permanent part of their family. Above all else, the case serves as a warning to all men in Florida of the importance of establishing paternity at the earliest opportunity, and of fighting for one’s parental rights when necessary.
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omaha.com, “Court reverses adoption of girl born in Ohio; father had fought mother’s actions“, June 25, 2016
