Stepparent Adoption

Fill out and file the required Judicial Council forms.  You may complete and files these forms on your own (pro per) or you may retain the services of an attorney to assist you with your filing:

• Adoption Request ( Adopt-200 )
• Adoption Agreement ( Adopt-210 )
• Order of Adoption ( Adopt-215 )

You can download the forms you need from the forms page of the Judicial Council website . On the state court forms page, under "Popular Topics"  click on “Adoption".

To file your completed forms, visit the Clerk’s Office for the Superior Court of California – County of Santa Clara Probate Division located at the Downtown Superior Court at 191 North First Street San Jose, California 95113.

Note: In section 12e on the form Adopt-200 – Adoption Request, you tell the court whether you will choose someone to do the investigation and pay them directly or whether you want the court to choose someone to do an investigation. If you select to have the court choose someone to complete the investigation for you, a social worker from the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency will conduct the assessment.; For more information, please see Step 3 below.

In order to complete a stepparent adoption, you must obtain consent from the biological parent (non-custodial parent) who is giving up custody of the child.

If the child’s non-custodial parent is willing to consent to the termination of their parental rights and the stepparent adoption, an AD 2A/2B form titled “Consent to Adoption by a Parent in or outside of California Giving Custody to Husband or Wife or Domestic Partner of Other Parent” must be completed, signed, and notarized. This form may be obtained from the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) website here: AD2A_2B.pdf (ca.gov) .

If the other/non-custodial parent does not want to sign a consent form, then you must file a petition seeking to terminate their parental rights.  Applicable legal sections should be cited in the petition.

• If the non-custodial parent is the child’s mother or a presumed father, you must file an Abandonment Petition seeking to free the child from parental care, custody, and control.
• If the other parent is an alleged father, you must file a Termination Petition seeking to terminate the parental rights of alleged father.

To learn how to fill out these forms , you can visit the California Courts website: Stepparent adoption in California | California Courts | Self Help Guide .

If on the Adoption Request (Adopt-200) form, you selected to have the Court choose someone to complete the stepparent adoption investigation (item #12e), then you will need to contact the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency to initiate the assessment process.

Please contact the unit that completes Stepparent Adoption assessments by calling (408) 792-8819 or emailing ProbateAssessments@ssa.sccgov.org .  A social worker will be assigned to your family to complete the Stepparent Adoption assessment.  A $200 fee will be collected to complete this assessment, which must be paid by check or money order.   The check or money order should be made out to the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency.

As part of this assessment, you will be required to complete a questionnaire, and provide all applicable documents including:

• Filed Adoption Request (Adopt-200)
• Filed Adoption Agreement (Adopt-210)
• Filed Order of Adoption (Adopt-215)
• Filed Consent by Other Parent (if applicable)
• Filed Abandonment or Termination Petition (if applicable)
• Certificate of marriage certificate, domestic partnership, or civil union
• Birth certificate for the child
• Death certificate (if applicable)
• Divorce decrees (if applicable)
• Any child custody, visitation, or child support orders related to the non-custodial parent
• Any other requested documentation

If on the Adoption Request (Adopt-200) form, you select to choose your own individual to complete an investigation (item #12e), please note that you do NOT need to contact the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency.  The individual you select to conduct the stepparent adoption assessment must be a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed marriage and family therapist, a licensed professional clinical counselor, or a private licensed adoption agency.  You shall pay any associated fees directly to the investigator.

If you are participating in a Stepparent Adoption assessment completed by a social worker from the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency, the assigned social worker will contact you directly to schedule a home visit.  A home visit will not be scheduled until all the required documentation listed in Step 3 has been received AND the petitioner/stepparent participates in LiveScan fingerprinting, as arranged by the assigned social worker.

When the assigned social worker completes the home visit, they will interview the petitioner/stepparent, the custodial/retraining parent, and the child regarding the adoption request.  It is the policy of the County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency that the child must be informed about the adoption request BEFORE the home visit is scheduled, so be sure to explain to the child that you are trying to adopt him/her. 

If you are using your own investigator, you must follow their process.

After you participate in the stepparent adoption assessment, the investigator will complete and file a written report with the Superior Court, which will include a recommendation about whether the adoption should be granted.  You should receive a copy of the file-stamped Stepparent Adoption report.  Once you receive your copy of the filed report, you must call the Calendar Clerk at the Probate Department to schedule your adoption hearing.  ( Click for Probate section of Court Telephone Numbers web page .)

Reminder: If the other parent did not give up his/her rights or if the Court has not ended his/her rights, you must file a Petition to Terminate Parental Rights first before you schedule your adoption hearing.

If you can’t locate the other parent and he is a presumed father, you must publish the notice in a newspaper. Talk to a lawyer for help with this process. You can find a lawyer from the membership list of the  Silicon Valley Bar Association’s member directory . You can also get a referral to a lawyer from the  Santa Clara County Bar Association  . Their phone number is 408-909-SVBA (7822).

Once the hearing is set, the petitioner/stepparent, the custodial/retaining parent, and the child must be present for the Adoption Hearing. Please plan to arrive to Court at least 20 minutes early and let the clerk know you are there.

If you didn’t already file these forms, bring the originals and 2 copies of your forms to your hearing:

• Order of Adoption ( Adopt-215 )
• Adoption Agreement ( Adopt-210 )

If the other parent did not sign a consent form, you cannot locate the other parent, or you did not file an abandonment/termination petition, talk to a lawyer for help with this process .

What do I do after the hearing? Go to the Probate Department at the Downtown Superior Court to file your papers. You can get certified copies of the Order of Adoption  (Adopt-215) for free. Just ask the clerk.