Step-Parent -- Relative Adoption Guide

Packets of all required forms may be obtained at www.waukeshacounty.gov or http://wicourts.gov/, or the Juvenile Court office.

FORMS REQUIRED AT TIME OF FILING TO INITIATE ADOPTION PROCEEDING

• Petition for Adoption - State Form #JC-1645
• Order for Hearing and Screening - SF #JC-1643
• Agency’s written Report of Investigation with recommendation and consent (Home Study)
• Copies of any previous divorce judgments (petitioner and spouse)
• Certified copy of Order Concerning Termination of Parental Rights (if previously done)*
• Report of Adoption (signed by adoptive parents)- #F-05022
  (DO NOT send the fee for the new birth certificate at the time of filing, however, DO fill in “Part IX” of the form with the total amount of new birth certificates you will want. The fee is $20.00 to file, $20.00 for the first birth certificate, $3.00 for each additional copy).

REQUIRED FORMS TO BE FILED PRIOR TO COURT HEARING

• Order for Adoption - SF #JC-1647
• Consent to Adoption (signed by minor who is being adopted, if over the age of fourteen and the non-terminating parent) - SF #JC-1646

GENERAL INFORMATION

A Guardian ad Litem will be appointed for the child by the Court in all adoption cases IF they are filed in conjunction with a Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) case and a $500.00 retainer collected at the time of filing. If the TPR has already been completed, the petitioner must submit a certified copy of the TPR Order with the adoption forms. If the parent who would be terminated is deceased, then the petitioner must submit a certified copy of the Death Certificate for the Court to review, which will be returned to you at the hearing in the courtroom.

The petitioner will need to contact one of the “Licensed Child Welfare Agencies” from the list in the forms packet and make arrangements to have a home study completed. This written home study must be submitted with all of the other required documents at the time of filing.

Adoptions must be heard within 90 days of filing unless they are filed with a TPR. Under Sec. 48.422 Wis. Stats., the TPR hearing shall be held within 30 days of the filing of the petition, therefore if an adoption is filed with a TPR, it will be placed on the court’s calendar within 30 days of filing. Both matters will be held concurrently, unless the TPR is contested. The Court will provide notice of the adoption proceedings by mailing a copy of the “Order for Hearing and Screening” to the petitioner’s Attorney, the petitioner and spouse, the agency who provided the home study and the Guardian ad Litem (if one has been appointed by the court).

At the conclusion of the adoption proceedings, the Court will give the signed, sealed “Report of Adoption” form to the adoptive family to submit to the child’s state of birth to obtain a certified copy of the new birth certificate. If the child was born in the State of Wisconsin, the fee is $40.00 ($3.00 ea. for additional copies) and should be made payable to “Bureau of Vital Statistics”. If the child was born in any other state, please call the Court before filing the paperwork to obtain the correct fee amount for that state and the correct form to use.